


The Fall

by zacizach



Category: Banana Bus Squad
Genre: Author loves to interact w readers, Developing Friendships, Eventual Romance, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Heavy dialogue, M/M, OOC, Okay mAAAYbe the warning is also because some other ppl died but dOnt worry about it, Video Game Logic, idk what to tag honestly you'd just have to read it to find out, john has issues of his own, john is done with everything, john is questioning everything yet hes still continuing, john loves his friends, let these dysfunctional characters be happy, lots of them - Freeform, no one is straight, rated T for an abundance amount of swearing coming your way, tags will change as the story goes on, uhhh undertale au but i dont want to tag undertale?, warning only because john is the only one that dies but he respawns
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-26
Updated: 2020-01-12
Packaged: 2021-02-18 03:16:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 23,862
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21570925
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zacizach/pseuds/zacizach
Summary: What was meant to be a suicide attempt turned into a one-way ticket to an adventure John didn't want.The young male should have known how shitty his luck was. Not even the highest mountain, where it was told that monsters are found underground, could end his life.But maybe this second chance is exactly what John needs.ORAU where your favorite youtubers are in the undertale universe idk what else you'd expect.
Relationships: John | KryozGaming/Jaren Smith
Comments: 32
Kudos: 66





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> if you're reading this please tell me if i should continue this damn book or not i blame the undertale musical for making me do this. i only started writing this because it keeps on nagging me to fUCKING WRITE IT or else i wont be able to do anything else so

**_Hush now, little ones. Let me tell you a tale about men and monsters._ **

**_A long time ago, the two species had lived in peace and harmony._ **

**_Until a war broke out. Many humans were slaughtered. Sons and fathers gone._ **

**_Monsters were banished into Mt. Ebott, never to see the sun again._ **

**_Never to feel love again._ **

Petals in the color of gold and yellow filled John's vision the moment he opened his eyes. His mind was still in disarray, confused and muffled thoughts fogging his brain. Once he registered and obtained a sense of consciousness, he finally realized just how painful his body felt. Arms and legs screaming, head finally aching. 

But even with all that... He finds that he's still alive. 

John ignored the pain, tried to muffle the cries he let out as he pushed himself off the patch of what he soon realized were flowers. He looked up, eyes squinting at the light shining down from wherever it came from. When John looked around, he finds himself in some sort of cave. With only one source of light he could see the rough edges of the wall surrounding him- except for one entry to... wherever it leads. 

Fingers clung into the dirt below him, crunching up petals and letting its thorns scratch his wrists. Tears welled up in his eyes but he did not dare let them drop. He quickly wiped them away.

John slowly stood up, his legs ever so often wobbling and shaking but besides that still holding him up. He walked, because that was all he could do, really. 

He walked on the only pathway leading to what he saw was a gateway to somewhere. It looked quite dark, making John a bit anxious. But honestly, going somewhere is certainly better than staying where he fell- 

...

John walked through the gate. Lost in his own thoughts, he didn't realize there was a patch of grass in front of him. He jumped when a flower adorning a face sprouted from the ground. It's weirdly cartoonish smile immediately gave John some bad feelings about it. Upon further inspection, he found that one of its eyes was an X, mimicking what was supposed to be a scar.

"Hello! My name's Flowey! I'm your NEW best friend!"

Yep, definitely bad feeling about this weird-ass flower. John gave this... talking flower a weird look, taking a cautious step back. He should have stayed where the flowers were. 

"Nope. No thanks." 

"Aw, c'mon! Seems like you don't know your way around- which can be scary and dangerous. I can help you! Give you some advice, yea? Whaddya say, buddy? The underground can be preeetty scary if you don't know how we do things 'round here." 

There is absolutely no way John was gonna let this talking flower be his tutorial guide. Not like he was given a choice, as Flowey looks like he was gonna start talking again. John resisted the urge to roll his eyes, instead listening to what this talking flower has to say to him. If not to entertain Flowey's motives then to make sure John doesn't immediately die. 

What he didn't expect next was for the entire room to suddenly blink in and out of existence, turning his entire world into total blackness. John frantically looked around in confusion. The flower was still there, but instead of gold petals, it was just pure white. John brought his hand up to run it through his hair out of sheer panic until he realized his hand was also white. 

Before he could go into a total panic, John felt something strange coming from where his heart is supposed to be. When he looked down, he was baffled to see a necklace around his neck, a heart-shaped ruby locket contrasting the black and white world he was in. It glowed every now and then, mimicking the beat of a heart. How did he not see that before? 

"You see that? That's your Soul! The very thing that keeps all of us alive. Your soul starts off weak but it can grow stronger if you gain a lot of LV."

"... What the fuck is-"

"Why it stands for LOVE, of course! You want some LOVE, right? I can share with you!"

John does not like how enthusiastic this fucking flower is. 

Flowey winked, making John all the more weirded out. White pellets suddenly appeared at John's eye-level, spinning around above the flower's... head? Bud? Petals? Whatever the anatomy of this talking flower is, John was staring at the pellets quite cautiously as Flowey begins to explain. 

"In the underground, LOVE is shared through these white friendliness pellets! Move around, collect as many as you can!"

The pellets began moving to where John was. Not trusting the flower one bit, he moved to the side, letting the pellets fly past him before disappearing. John looked at the flower, before realizing a yellow color in his vision. Looking down, he was baffled at the sight of what looks like a Level system and an HP bar. Full health, 20/20. Is he in a dream? It has to be a dream.

"Oh, it seems like you missed. Well, don't worry, friend! I have a lot of LOVE to share!" 

More pellets formed, going to John much faster than before. His reaction time wasn't that fast, but John managed to dodge them all anyway, glaring at the flower. Flowey's eye twitched ever so slightly.

"... You fool." 

John suddenly let out a piercing cry, pain surrounding his entire body. It felt like a knife had stabbed him on the back and it's fucking painful. Shakily, John looked up, seeing two pellets returning to where Flowey was. He must have formed another pellet behind him and he didn't notice...

The yellow HP bar used to be full, but now there's only one digit left. 

Flowey cackled, his smile suddenly sinister and eyes (eye?) no longer having it's innocent look. A circle of white pellets formed around John, trapping him. 

"In this world, it's kill or be killed."

**"D I E."**

High-pitch laughter filled John's ears, giving him a sense of dread and hopelessness as the pellets slowly began to surround him. John was too weak to move or try to escape but nonetheless crawled slightly to prevent a stray pellet to touch him. He knew he shouldn't have trusted this fucking flower- then again, he never did... He was just stupid enough to not do anything. Now the talking annoying flower is laughing, enjoying John's inevitable death. 

Until a fireball appeared out of nowhere, striking Flowey who cried. He disappeared into the ground, white pellets disappearing.

The black and white world blinked until color returned. The grass where Flowey was, was empty. A tall figure with grey bunny ears and a blindfold took its place.

"What an awful creature, that flower. How dare he hurt another innocent being." He said disapprovingly. The stranger kneeled down, helping John to sit up from where he laid just a while ago. For some reason, this creature seemed much nicer than the flower John had seen. 

"Do not be afraid. I may be a monster, but I won't hurt you. Let me heal you." Before John could say anything, the monster had held onto John's left arm. Despite the action being gentle and comforting, a sense of panic filled John and he quickly snatched his arm away, cradling it close to his chest. 

"N-Not that arm." John murmured. The monster only let out an 'oh', not pressing further on the subject. John gave him his other arm, letting the monster lift his sleeve to his elbows. A green aura surrounded the monster's hand, holding onto John's left arm softly and comfortingly. For some reason, John felt better. The pain was soon gone and when it seemed as if John was alright, the monster pulled away. 

"My name is Ohm, what's yours?"

Is John really gonna give this bunny guy his name? To be fair, he seemed really kind and technically he did save him from getting killed by an evil flower. Who knows what kind of beings he's gonna see if he continues down the path?

"John." 

"Nice to meet you, John. I often visit this place, checking to see if anyone had fallen down. Honestly speaking, you were the first human to fall in a long time. You didn't suffer any more injuries, did you?"

"No, but then..." Shouldn't the fall have killed me? Was what John wanted to say, but he chose not to.

"No worries, my friend. These ruins are quite confusing and full of danger- but! There's no need to fear. In fact, I can lead you to my home and teach you all you need to know."

Ohm helped John stand on his feet. From there, John realized just how... tall Ohm seemed to be. John likes to think he's an average tall height for a guy, but Ohm is like a head taller than him. It makes it quite awkward to crane his head up to look at him. He had to remind himself that Ohm is a bunny, not a human. 

"Come, follow me."

* * *

"I can't believe I just spent the last hour TALKING to monsters," John exclaimed, flailing his arms around himself as he and Ohm walked along a path. Ohm only laughed at John's bizarre behavior. 

"Talking to monsters is much more efficient than fighting them, is it not? They all deserve being spared and given mercy, even though they wish to harm or block your way."

John huffed a bit, crossing his arms. "Oh screw you, you're blindfolded." 

"I'm a bunny, dear John. My ears are quite sensitive."

John rolled his eyes. As silence filled between them, John took the time to pull out the black-like screen that hovered in front of him. He found out he could pull out his stats or whatever the heck this thing was called whenever he's not in battle with any monsters. It was weird, but after meeting Flowey John forced himself to not question anything anymore. 

The black screen showed his name but what he was more focused on was how his LV stayed the same. It made John wonder how he could level up so that he doesn't have to worry about his health staying at 20 all the time. But then... whenever he spared a monster, it states that he was given G but never EXP. He wondered what would happen if he just fought them instead?

"Oh, seems like there's a monster blocking our way, why not talk to him?" 

John put away the screen to look at what Ohm was talking about. A ghost figure was found laying on the ground covered in red leaves. He hovered ever so slightly but besides that stayed immobile, even when John was directly in front of where his head is.

"ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ."

... He's saying the words out loud, pretending to sleep. The ghost looked pretty normal, almost like a human except for, y'know, being a ghost and all. He had legs and arms that were laying over his stomach... Some plain old shirt and jeans but the only thing unique that he finds about this ghost is that he was wearing a one-sided headphone with a microphone on the other side. The entire ghost was green in color and obviously translucent.

"... Oh for fucks sake."

"John? What are you-?"

Before Ohm could finish his sentence, John had merely given the ghost a light shove. It resulted in his world blinking into black and white, commencing another battle

_Here comes Nogla._

... Why is there a swing music happening background? Is he a boss?

John pressed his hand on CHECK. 

_Nogla - ATK 10 DEF 10_   
_An idiotic dumbass but not really. Though the things he says makes you question his intelligence. Good musician, though._

Okay, then. 

Nogla fidgeted with his hands, hovering up and down as he takes in John's expressions.

"Was I blocking your way? Oh, my days... Uh, oh... oh dear..." 

White like strings suddenly snapped into existence. John barely had the time to dodge until he realized the strings formed on areas where he was. This forced him to move around, jumping over the strings whenever he needed to and ducking his head to prevent his HP from getting lower. Unfortunately, his foot got caught on a string, inflicting not only pain on his entire leg but damage on his HP. At least it's still at 14 HP, somehow. 

It was John's turn to ACT. He didn't think too much about it, finally getting the hang of the controls as he pressed on CHEER. 

"Take your time, man," John said, his action bars disappearing from his vision. He genuinely gave Nogla a small smile, hoping it would calm the nervous ghost. Nogla nervously smiled back, his hands still fiddling with each other until he suddenly frowned and looked away.

John was confused until he saw the words fill the ground.

_SORRY, NOT FEELING UP TO IT RIGHT NOW._

This is so fucking weird. 

It went back and forth like this. John continuing to cheer the ghost up (why the fuck would he flirt with him?) while Nogla's mood seems to be getting better. Eventually, when it was Nogla's turn, he summoned a ghost guitar out of nowhere, saying he wants to play something. 

John was strangely impressed with how fluid the guitar playing is, mixing into the background boss music almost perfectly. Is John crazy? John is definitely crazy.

"That sounds awesome." John complimented the ghost, who flustered in response (which apparently counted as a turn). John tapped on MERCY and pressed onto Spare. 

The battle was finished. Gained 0 EXP and 25 G.

"Sorry for blocking your way again..." Nogla said, his guitar nowhere to be seen. Looking up, the ghost noticed Ohm and shyly waved at the bunny.

"Oh, hi Ohm."

"Hello, Nogla."

"I'll just go now... uh... _ooooooo_." Nogla drawled out the ghost sounds, disappearing into the air. Out of all the battles he's been for the past hour, Nogla's was the weirdest.   
John was apparently lost in his own thoughts until he felt Ohm placing a hand on his shoulder. "Let us move on, shall we?" Ohm smiled and walked ahead, disappearing into the next room. John sighed, running his hand through his hair, feeling how oily it was. Geez, he should take a bath. 

He opened his stats again, staring at the number one which almost seemed to be mocking him for not gaining any EXP. John then glanced down at the patch of leaves where Nogla was. 

Huh... how exactly did he know Nogla's exact stats? 

Deciding it was not to be concerned about, John continued on forward until his foot accidentally stumbled upon something in the leaves. Curious, he kneeled down and swatted away the dead leaves, revealing what looks like a small panda charm. John obtained the item, realizing that he could equip it to increase his DEF.

The panda charm looked old and worn-out, but nonetheless quite adorable.

_Maybe being cuter won't make the monsters hit you as hard_

"John?"

"Coming!" John quickly clipped the charm on one of the belt loops, running after Ohm.


	2. Chapter 2

More puzzles, more monsters that could've killed him right there and then, John's life is increasingly getting weirder. Yet John finds the entire experience not that unpleasant. 

It's unusual how John is able to understand the language the monsters speak. He's aware that the words they spoke during their battles weren't English, but it's just weird how he could still understand them anyway. Word for word. 

"John? You seem stressed about something, would you like to talk about it?" Ohm ever so kindly asked. John was exhausted from 'battling' with the monsters earlier. Despite a peaceful Froggit advising him that if he spares them, they won't bother him anymore, it seems they only grow much more confident in battling him in every room. 

Well, at least the Vegetoids and Migsops are. He swore he saw Migsops more than a handful of times by now. The Vegetoids are just... annoying talking carrots, basically. They must have gotten pissed when John remarked that he barely eats his vegetables.

"Just tired, Ohm. I'd rather not see another talking vegetable for the next ten minutes." 

This made the rabbit hybrid laugh. John took the time to actually take note of Ohm's features. His ears, nose and some whiskers resemble a rabbit, however, he noticed that the overall structure of Ohm's head resembles a human. Slightly tanned skin with a few scars, stubble and a kind smile. His hair was neat and brown, with a few grey strands of hair hiding between them. He wondered what his eyes would look like under that grey blindfold. 

Honestly, John didn't focus much in school. Not like he wanted to purposely fail- he just couldn't. No matter what, math equations wouldn't add up and essays wouldn't make sense in his handwriting. It was difficult trying to get a pass (not like it mattered). 

John vaguely remembered history lessons about the monsters about a millennia ago. He remembered that as long as they don't follow the biological parts of what makes a human, they would consider them as a monster (no matter what they look like). And if that's not convincing enough, having an upside-down monster soul certainly will. 

John glanced down at the locket. For some odd reason, it changed into a golden locket whenever he's out of battle. When he's against a monster, it would turn red. It was weird, and John wasn't sure what the significance was. 

"Ohm, can I ask you something?"

"What is it?"

"How do you know that ghost? That, uh, Nogla guy." 

Ohm fondly smiled. "Ah, Nogla and I used to be quite close. I met him one day when my group of friends decided to invite their friends to hang out. We were quite young- about a hundred years or so, which would be equivalent to being around 14 in human years. Nogla's a kind man, though his intellect can be... questionable at times. However, he's a talented guitarist. There was also another ghost in the group who is just as talented as he is."

John frowned, seeing Ohm's face shift into one of sadness and nostalgia. "As you can see, those happy times have come and go." 

"What happened?"

"Time. We all grew up and eventually parted ways. Even though we left on good terms, and I still talk to a few every now and then, I couldn't help but feel selfish for wanting to be that young naive child once again."

John felt sorry for Ohm. But that feeling was shifted to confusion when Ohm was staring at him with a surprised look on his face. Well, not at him, but more like at the panda charm John still had it attached to his belt loop.

"Where did you find that charm?" 

"Uhh... you know where Nogla was? Yea, there. Why? Is it yours? Here." John had unclipped the panda keychain by then, decreasing his DEF. Despite Ohm's reluctant look, he took the charm from John's outstretched hand, surveying the small item. Ohm looked utterly destroyed at the sight of such thing, which only made John wonder just who had Ohm met that had the panda charm.

Ohm placed the charm in a little bag he was carrying, the look of dismay and sorrow he had earlier was replaced with a calm expression.

"I apologize for my behavior. My house isn't so far now, come. The sooner we reach there the sooner you can rest."

John caught on Ohm's quick change of subject but didn't say anything. Clearly, Ohm had some memories he would rather not remember and honestly? So does John. 

The walk didn't last that long, surprisingly. If John knew they were just two rooms away he would've continued on. 

"Well, here we are. Home." Ohm smiled. He side-stepped the large tree and continued towards the entrance of his home. John saw the yellow-like star glowing in front of the tree. It was the same star he saw a few times before, but he never brought himself to actually interact with it. Mostly due to the fact he finds it suspicious but considering it was in front of his friend's home...

Noticing Ohm was busy searching his bag for his keys, John decided to give it a try. He slowly placed his hand on the star and was suddenly overwhelmed with strange energy going through his body.

_Seeing the small and safe home... fills you with determination._

A black screen appeared before John, surprising him. Again, it showed his name and stats. Still stuck on LV 1... HP 20/20... nothing seemed out of-

John stopped his hand from pressing onto the SAVE button, his eyes focused on the name found at the top left of the screen. Why is it like that? That's not his name, right?

No, he's quite sure that's not his name. At least, he thinks so. Ever since he was a kid, everyone called him John. It is possible that John was simply a nickname but- no, it just doesn't feel right. John never liked being called that, anyway.

Ignoring the heavy feeling in his gut, he pressed SAVE.

"John, come inside!"

The inside of the house was... warm and welcoming. Being in other people's houses always gives John anxiety as well as feeling like he shouldn't be there in the first place. It was not the case with Ohm's home, which was weird. Yet John accepted the comforting feeling and followed Ohm as he began giving John a tour of his house. 

"Here is the main living room/dining room, over there leads to the kitchen. The other hall leads to the bedrooms- one which is mine, and one where you can rest. There is another but unfortunately, it's currently being... renovated. There's a staircase leading down but it's currently out of bounds."

John quietly took note of the pause. The place seems pretty nice. There's already an ongoing fire in the fireplace, surrounding John in a pleasant blanket of warmth despite wearing a rather thick hoodie. 

"Oh! I actually want to give you something..." Ohm rummaged through his bag again. John patiently stood there until Ohm pulled out a bulky-like item that closely resembles an old phone.

"A cellphone! That way, whenever we are ever apart, you can always call me."

The gesture was kind but... As John obtained the cellphone and inspected through its contents (finding that it only allows him to call), he couldn't help but be curious.

"You guys have reception here?"

"I don't think the reception we have here is the same as what you know... but yes. You can call me anywhere- my number is already there."

Sure enough, Ohm's name has already been added into the contact list under the name of 'Ohmwrecker' which intrigues John as to why his name is like that.

"Thanks, Ohm. I'll make sure to use it."

"I sure hope so! Not like you would use it that much since you'll be... well..." Ohm coughed into his sleeve. "Why not I show you to your room? You must be tired from sparing all those monsters earlier."

John was gently pushed towards the hall where the rooms were. He yawned, quietly following Ohm into one of the rooms that seem unused yet cleaned. It was a simple room with a closet, a bed, and a toy box. There was also some other stuff but John was too tired to properly analyze. His exhaustion has finally caught up to him.

John took off his boots and slipped under the covers. He could hear Ohm wishing him a good night and felt a rough hand caressing the side of his hair. John liked the feeling, and not long after that did he fall into a deep, dreamless sleep. 

When he woke up, he finds that the room was dark. Rubbing the sleep out of his eye, John got out of bed and turned on the nearest lamp, which was located on a desk. What he found on the desk was a note and a plate of warm and delicious-looking pie.

_Hello, John_

_Do you remember that one question I asked of you? Whether you prefer cinnamon or butterscotch? I know you said you prefer cinnamon but I was actually planning on baking a pie for you, and may or may not have decided to combine both ingredients together. I hope you like cinnamon butterscotch pie!_

_PS. You may use the closet to change out of your clothes :)_

While John was reading the note, he was actually eating the pie. He did remember Ohm asking him that question, but honestly speaking John only said cinnamon because he had no idea what butterscotch was. Whatever it was, combined with cinnamon this pie taste fucking amazing. He didn't even realize he was half-way finished with the pie until he finally put down the note.

With Ohm's permission, he opened the closet, hoping to find some new pair of jeans or somewhere along those lines. Much to his relief, he did find some jeans of different sizes, as well as a bunch of shirts neatly folded into colors. 

John switched out his jeans first, changing from the dirty dark blue to black. He took off his primary-colored hoodie to change his shirt. Pulling the sleeve off, John stared at his left arm, wrapped in a dirty bandage. He eventually snapped out of it and changed his shirt into a new one before wearing the hoodie again. 

Something glimmered at the corner of the closet. John went to pick the item up and found a silver ring with a turquoise gem on top. He wore it on his index finger and was surprised to find that it fit perfectly. 

Deciding that he was done, John collected the half-finished pie and went to find Ohm in the living room, who was sitting in the armchair with a book on his hands.

"Hello, John. Have you rested well?" Ohm politely placed his book down in order to put his entire focus on John. John nodded, smiling gratefully at the bunny. 

"Yea. Thanks for letting me use the closet."

"It's no problem! Enjoying the pie?"

John took a bite out of the pie as an answer, which made Ohm chuckle a bit. After a bit of talking, Ohm had allowed John to do as he please as long as he promised not to hurt himself. John wasn't sure why he needed Ohm's permission, but he finds himself nodding anyway as his legs irked to walk around for a bit, explore the rest of the house. 

He went back to the hallway where the rooms were. It was a relatively short hallway, but it did have some plants pushed on the walls. They surprisingly seemed to be well taken care of by the bunny monster, but he didn't focus on that. Neither did he focus on the last door that held a sign. 

There was a mirror, high enough that John can see his upper body clearly. 

_It's you._

John touched the ends of his platinum dyed hair. It has been weeks since he last dyed his hair... His natural hair color contrasted the platinum as it practically held the roots as its territory. He wondered in the back of his head if he should cut it, but decided against it. He inspected the primary-colored hoodie he always wore. It used to be bright, but due to dirt and age it got darker (and dirtier, he supposed).

He looked up at the mirror again, trying to find something else.

_It's still you._

John walked away from the mirror.

After informing Ohm he'll be out for a bit, John left the house. He went back to the path and started walking in a random direction, being slightly cautious of any monsters that want to battle... encounter him.

Huh, encounter. That sounds much better than battle. 

At some point, John passed by another friendly Froggit, who started speaking to him.

"You've met Ohm, right human?"

"Yea, what about it?"

For a moment John thought he saw Froggit looked sympathetic but he wasn't so sure.

"Might wanna be careful around him. He's gentle and kind, we all know this and have seen it many times... But Ohm had years of practice in using his magic. He can be intimidating and will be dangerous."

It gave John chills just hearing this talking monster more information about his savior. He should have expected that Ohm wasn't fully innocent- which is hard if he had to be honest. Ohm has been genuinely kind to him this entire time. He didn't seem to treat John like a victim- instead, it was as if he was welcoming an old friend. 

Ohm had made John comfortable. He easily joked, made sure he was alright every step of the way. And much to his surprise, he responded to John's dirty remarks with his own. John had never met anyone like Ohm (and probably never will) to the point he didn't think anything was wrong.

John shook his head rapidly and decided to leave the Froggit alone. After hearing what that Froggit had to say, he couldn't help but suddenly feel tense. What if Ohm was like Flowey? Well, not demonic-like but what if Ohm was just pulling him into thinking he was a friend before stabbing him in the back like the othe-

Being lost in his head once more, he didn't realize he had reached what looks like a balcony overseeing a large city within a cavern. John awed, leaning against the brick that was holding him back, inspecting the large area that seems to have been rid of life for so long. 

Ohm had called this area 'Ruins' before. It makes sense since no one lives here except for a handful of monsters.

... But why did they leave? This is the 'Ruins', not a place to call... a home. It dawned on John that staying here won't immediately make him feel better. It won't make his problems go away. And even though he met Ohm- such a kind and wonderful monster... John won't be happy here. 

And even if it did he knew it wouldn't last long. Loneliness and unhappiness have always followed him wherever he goes. Even if he tries to be happy, his negativity will just overtake it anyway. 

He can't let Ohm be involved with his problems. 

John's heart... soul felt heavy in his chest as he walked back to where Ohm's house is. It wouldn't be fair for Ohm to have him around being a good-for-nothing. Ohm's too nice and John's... not. 

Within minutes he finds himself at the entrance of the main room. Ohm was still sitting in the armchair, a book on his lap. He had noticed John's appearance earlier and had waved him a greeting before continuing his activity. It made John feel worse.

"Ohm?"

"Yes, John?"

Stars, why does it feel like John is about to reveal he's gay to his overly innocent mother? His hands felt clammy and the air around him became too thick, it was suffocating. The fire that once brought him a comforting warmth now began roaring violently, making John sweat from both the fire and out of his anxiety. 

_Now or never, John._

"Is there a way out of the Ruins?"

Silence. That was all John received as he finally asked. Ohm stared at him, lips twitching slightly as he kept his neutral face. John wasn't sure what the monster bunny was thinking but knew it was a bad sign when Ohm did not say anything for a while.

His soul was thumping a bit too loudly in his ears until finally, Ohm spoke.

"W-Why would you want to know? You're living here, are you not?" Ohm was nervous, chuckling as if trying to fix the tension in the room, but John was not having it. His breathe hitched when Ohm asked if he was living here- He was giving him a home. A place to rest, to be safe and to not feel lonely ever again. Ohm was giving him all that despite only meeting hours prior. 

No, don't. Ohm doesn't know who John is. He doesn't know the demons he has. 

"I was just wondering because- well... I want to explore?" John lied, but knew it terribly failed when his voice went a bit higher at the end, making it sound like it was a question. 

Shit, Ohm's giving him a blank stare now. No longer did he have a small smile- it was just a thin line. It didn't help that he was wearing a blindfold, so he has no idea what emotions are currently swirling in his eyes. The fire crackling filled the space between them.

"John... Do you want to leave the underground and go back to the surface?"

John didn't reply.

Ohm sighed. He stood up and tossed his book gently on the seat of the armchair, effectively avoiding eye-contact from John. The taller monster's shoulders were stiff, arms locked at the sides as Ohm tried to even his breathing. John couldn't say the same for himself, as he felt his chest tightening due to his anxiety rising.

"... I have to go somewhere. Stay here." Still avoiding eye-contact, Ohm swiftly left the room. John barely turned just in time to see Ohm disappear down the stairs of the basement. 

No- No no no this was NOT what John wanted. He didn't want Ohm feeling... whatever the fuck he was feeling. Adrenaline suddenly rushed through him as he ran, climbing down two steps at the time, determined to tell Ohm he was sorry. 

The bottom of the stairs leads to a long tunnel, which John did not process fully as he was too focused on reaching Ohm. He did reach Ohm, who had stopped when he heard John's boots tapping on the ground.

"Ohm! Wait!" John reached out to hold onto Ohm's loose sleeve. He remained still, avoiding eye-contact as much as he can. This made John a bit frustrated. "Look- I'm sorry, okay?! Whatever I said that somehow made you angry but-"

"But it's true. You do wish to go back 'home'."

"Ohm-"

"Ahead of us lies the end of the Ruins. A one-way exit to the rest of the underground." Ohm looked over his shoulder. Fear filled John when he realized how... menacing Ohm looked. He stumbled back a bit, arm letting go of the sleeve. 

"I am going to destroy it. No one will be able to leave, ever again. Now please, go back upstairs."

Ohm continued down the path, disappearing into the dark hall. John was confused- scared, yes, but mostly confused. For some odd reason, he could tell there was another reason why Ohm wanted to keep him here and not because he's just possessive. 

John huffed before running after him again. 

He managed to reach Ohm who somehow stopped but before he could be near him, Ohm began speaking, his voice echoing off the walls as he reasoned with John. John halted, mostly due to the fact Ohm speaking shocked him.

"Every human that falls down here have met the same fate. I have seen it again and again- they come, they leave and they die..." John could tell Ohm felt like crying, but he was keeping a strong face. "You naive human... If you leave the Ruins they- ... the king of monsters will kill you with no mercy."

Ohm managed to smile a bit. "I'm only protecting you, John. Do you understand now? Please... Please go back upstairs. I can't let you suffer the same fate as the others." 

He walked ahead once more, but this time John didn't care. He followed the path, tried to run as fast in hopes of catching up but for some reason Ohm had literally disappeared.

He still continued running until he reached the end. A tall door stood ahead of him, blocked by Ohm that had his back towards him. 

"... You want to leave so badly?" 

John felt goosebumps formed when Ohm began speaking lowly, turning around with a defeated look on the monster's face. 

"If that's what you want... Then prove it."

John reached out. "Ohm-"

"Prove to me that you're strong enough to survive out there!" 

John didn't know when it happened, but he felt a tear slip down his cheek. No, he doesn't want to fight his friend- he doesn't want to fight Ohm! And knowing Ohm, he doesn't want to fight him either. 

"I'm sorry, John." 

The world blinked into black and white. John trembled lightly as he encountered his first friend in the underground. 

_Ohm looks through you._

No- no, please! He doesn't want to fight him! Almost desperate, John pressed on TALK.

"Ohm! Listen, please! I don't want to fight you!" Ohm did not reply, nor did he react. It was as if John's words held no meaning against Ohm, which demoralized John a tiny bit. Ohm was the one that taught him that any encounter can be handled by being merciful. 

Ohm struck his hands out towards John, who was utterly unprepared for the attack Ohm was gonna give. 

John felt the earth shake beneath him. Almost on instincts, he dived forward, merely missing the earth that had formed from the ground up. The ground continued shaking, forcing John to run and jump forward to avoid the earth from attacking him. However, he failed to anticipate the ground from coming up in front of him. 

John cried in pain as the earth formed directly below him. He was pushed up and landed somewhere on the ground. John felt blood dripping from his mouth and went to wipe it, looking at Ohm who continued to stare at him almost emotionless. His legs struggled to stand by himself, forcing him to lean a bit which caused him to glance down at his HP. 

_10/20 HP_

Fuck- he was strong. How strong is he?

John didn't know if talking was gonna have a difference, so he pressed on CHECK instead.

_Ohm - 80 ATK 80 DEF_   
_Knows what's best for you._

By what, nearly killing him? 

Checking Ohm had used up his turn. Ohm did the same attack as he did previously, which John finds it easier to dodge now. 

The FIGHT button glowed on his left, but he chose to ignore it. Instead, he pressed on TALK again. 

However, when he tried to speak, there were no words. 

_You couldn't seem to think of any conversation topics._

The next attack Ohm did was not what John expected. Fireballs started forming all around John. A moment after, fireball after fireball began launching themselves towards John. Even when John dodged them, the fireball only U-turned to attack John once more. He didn't know this at first- only when two of the returning fireballs had hit him did he find out the pattern.

_2/20 HP_

John was weak but he tried to dodge the fire. His back was scorched from the hit, his right sleeve burnt, yet John continued. As long as he focused on dodging the attacks, then he will be fine. 

However, the moment he looked at Ohm, his focus was lost. A cry pierced through the air as the fire strike John on the back.

The last thing he saw before total darkness took over his vision was Ohm covering his mouth with a horrified expression.

**G A M E O V E R**

_You cannot give up just yet..._

_Jonathan!_

_Stay determined..._


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> John panics like... 3/4 of this chapter
> 
> also im still surprised people actually like this book so pls comment down if theres like any criticism or jUst anything im currently high on caffeine and have been awake for 25 hours sned help
> 
> besides that hope you're still enjoying the story so far

John retracted his hand from the glowing star. Did he feel... confused? He wasn't sure why but everything feels familiar and weird. John inspected his surroundings, seeing the purple walls, a single tree and a bunch of red leaves collecting at the bottom. 

"John, come inside!" 

Ohm's kind voice pulled John out of his reverie. Wait, didn't John hear this before? 

Cautiously, John followed Ohm into his home. He had seen his house before, but how? It's like he's having some sense of deja vu as he looked around. Ohm was talking, but John can't hear him. No- he can hear him, he just doesn't know what Ohm was saying.

Except he does know what he's saying- he can read Ohm's lips. He knows the words of what Ohm was saying, he just can't hear them. But he doesn't have to hear them because he already knew what Ohm was saying because he had said it before- but how- and why-?! 

John stumbled forward, having to hold onto the railings that prevented him from falling into the staircase below. A foggy memory, full of purple brick walls and a tall door. Ohm was there- why was he there? And why does he look so horrified? 

"John! Are you okay?! Come on, don't pass out..." 

The human didn't protest as Ohm easily lead him away from the staircase. His entire body was screaming- not only out of exhaustion but out of misery and pain. It was burning him, but there are no actual injuries on his body. He was so sure of that- why is it so painful? Ohm, help, please!

He was lead to the bedroom (how did he know it was a bedroom). John felt the confusingly familiar sheets under his hands; clenching into it like a lifeline in hopes it would stop hurting so much. He could vaguely feel some sort of magic surrounding him- well, not him specifically, more like his soul. 

The pain gradually lessened until John can easily breathe again. He was tired and sweating, but he's alright. John's okay.

What happened...?

"Ohm..." 

"Shh, it's okay. We'll talk later, just rest for now." 

John unconsciously nodded. At that point, he felt... numb. Not in a bad way, not in a good way either. It certainly did give him a break from hell which allowed him to sleep without difficulty. However, he was plagued with visions full of fire and tears. 

When he woke up, he finds that the room was dark. Rubbing the sleep out of his eye, John got out of bed and turned on the nearest lamp, which was located on a desk. What he found on the desk was a note and a plate of warm and delicious-looking...

Hadn't he seen this before?

The note and the pie were alarmingly familiar. Without even reading the note, John immediately went to taste the pie. He can taste the cinnamon but there was another taste in there- butterscotch. He remembered Ohm asking him if he prefers butterscotch or cinnamon, which John said he prefers cinnamon because he had no idea what butterscotch was. 

Except he does know. The taste of butterscotch was strangely familiar- as if he knew how it would taste like before even eating one. Everything that's been happening to him is like one huge deja vu and he did not like it. Even looking down at the note, he could tell he had somehow read it despite not even seeing it before (except he had). He sighed, frustrated.

John opened the closet, a sense of deja vu overcoming him as he inspected the shirts and jeans neatly organized. He does remember changing out of his jeans, considering how dirty it was. So that's what he did first.

Next, John took off his hoodie only to stop to stare at his bandaged arm. He felt like he had done something like this before but wasn't so sure. He changed out of the shirt. 

Without even looking John reached out blindly to one side of the closet, his fingers immediately feeling the texture of a small ring. John finds himself to be surprised when he should have expected it, really. He knows there was something there just... he inserted the ring in his index finger. It fitted perfectly.

John left the room.

"John! How was your rest?" Ohm asked, placing a book down on his lap as John trudged into the main room, rubbing the rest of the sleep out of his eyes. He faintly smiled, in hopes, it would ease the worries which ended up being futile. Ohm sighed, concern showing as he walked over to where John was. 

"Come and sit, my friend." 

John sat down in the armchair. It was surprisingly big, which let John's leg hang at the edge of the seat. Ohm kneeled in front of him and took his hand with his own- which John realized was actually fur. Monster anatomy is weird. 

Their connected hands glowed a soft green. John felt a gentle tug on his soul. He was worried there was something wrong until he felt... warm. His soul hummed pleasantly as it was surrounded by a soft and warm blanket that spoke of safety and comfort. 

He was calm now. No longer confused or hurt just... calm.

"Do you feel better now?" Ohm asked sweetly, the green magic vanishing into thin air. John noticed Ohm still holding onto his hand, his furry paw finger thingies caressing his knuckles gently. 

"Yea, I'm better. What did you do?"

"I calmed you down through Soul magic, basically. It's a much more intimate way of projecting feelings to someone. I was terribly worried when you have hunched over in pain a few hours ago. However, when I checked, there were no physical injuries. Your soul was crying, though, so I had to calm you."

John used his free hand to touch the heart locket. So that's what he felt earlier before he fell asleep? That magic surrounding his soul? 

"Sorry I worried you, Ohm. Honestly, I'm not too sure what happened, either." John apologetically said, which Ohm waved it off. 

"No need to apologize, my friend. Maybe a walk can help you clear your mind? I'll be preparing a special tea in the meantime."

A walk sounds perfect right now. Ohm had wished him a safe walk, patting him on the head while doing so. And while John doesn't find the action amusing, he does feel quite pleasant, which was surprising. 

John left the house and finds himself on a path he vaguely remembered. As he followed the path, he stumbled upon a friendly Froggit.

"You've met Ohm, right human?"

John gave the monster a quizzical look. Had they talked before? Because he swore he had heard that exact question at least once. 

"Uh... Yea? What about it?"

"Might wanna be careful around him. He's gentle and kind, we all know this and have seen it many times... But Ohm had years of practice in using his magic. He can be intimidating and will be dangerous."

John blinked when he heard Froggit's 'advice'. Disturbed, John quickly walked away from the Froggit, hands in his pockets as he tries to decipher his unorganized thoughts. Eventually, he finds himself looking out of what seems to be an empty city. John rested his hands against the brick that held him from falling, sighing deeply as he tries to figure out what exactly has been happening.

He's not crazy. John isn't crazy- he's not imagining things, is he? No, everything seems pretty real to him. Maybe he accidentally knocked himself on the head somehow?

Don't lie to yourself. You have seen this place before. 

John clenched his fist, frustration seeping out. Does he? Nothing makes sense to him.

Except... Except for one thing.

"I won't be happy here." John voiced out his thought. However, it wasn't quite processed fully, which made the platinum-haired male surprise. But it's true, isn't? He won't be happy here- he can't be happy here. For the same reason why he fell down in the first place...

He can't burden Ohm with the problems he can't fix. It wouldn't be fair for Ohm. John has to do this alone.

John's soul felt... familiarly heavy as he walked back to Ohm's house. He couldn't understand why it was familiar- it's not even a good feeling, to begin with. 

When John entered the house, he immediately begin walking over to Ohm, who was peacefully sitting down on his armchair, reading a book. However, John's boots halted in the doorway. There was something holding him back from talking to Ohm. There was something egging him in the back of his head, telling him to not follow the same route. 

Wait, what route?

Before Ohm could notice him (or maybe he did but John didn't bother checking), John backed out and walked to the hallway, his arms wrapped around himself as he tries to find out what exactly his instincts were trying to tell him. 

Honestly speaking, John was starting to get a bit freaked out but he forced himself to be calm. 

John walked right past the room he slept in and stood in front of Ohm's room. John spared a glance at the main room, where Ohm was, before entering. 

It was... underwhelming at best. Compared to the room he slept in, Ohm's room was very simple. It's kind of a sad sight, really. A large bed, a bookcase that's full of dusty books, a desk, and chair, closet... that's pretty much it. Nothing seemed to stand out, but John was still determined to see if anything here can help him... in any way. 

On Ohm's desk, he noticed a small leather sling bag, laid down on it's back. John wondered why Ohm left it there but decided to snoop around for a bit. He's not gonna steal anything... hopefully. 

Surprisingly, there wasn't much inside the bag. There was another small bag which contained small carrots (most likely for snacking) and what looks like a mini-novel. Despite the words written like utter gibberish, John finds that he could somehow understand it. He doesn't find himself alarmed and placed the book back inside, trying to see if there was anything else. 

Apparently, there was. When John felt something fuzzy, he held onto the item and pulled it out. The panda charm he found earlier was still stashed in Ohm's bag. Just staring at the charm, John wondered who had fallen down here that would have such items. 

John knew he shouldn't do this but... he quickly clipped the panda charm into his belt loop. 

The walk back to where Ohm was, was awful. John nearly felt like crying due to how bad he felt- and also the anxiety but fuck that, honestly. He wondered in the back of his head if he was making some kind of mistake.

No- no, he has to do this. If not for Ohm then for-

For... for what? 

"John? Are you okay?" Ohm finally noticed John just standing at the doorway, his eyes cast somewhere in the room. John stood there for a while, before mustering up the remaining courage he had left to traverse across the room and towards Ohm, who had taken the time to place his book down on his lap. 

Ohm looked worried. John wanted to punch himself.

"Ohm?"

"Yes, John?"

John's soul ached. The air around him became suffocating. 

"... Is there a way out of the Ruins?"

* * *

_Fire. Pain. Tears. Ohm._

_No. Don't. Please._

_Wait. Please._

_Don't repeat. Don't._

_Game over. Change. Something. Anything._

_Ryan!_

* * *

"Prove to me that you're strong enough to survive out there!" 

John blinked, his mind going blank for a brief moment. How... did he get here? What's on his- why is he crying? 

He nearly tripped over himself as a train of memories suddenly hit him as if he was nothing. John barely had the time to decipher those memories- to understand where the fuck they came from- when Ohm let out a tearful cry.

"I'm sorry."

His world blinked into black and white. John's intake of air suddenly picked up as anxiety and pressure overwhelmed him. Nononono- he doesn't want to encounter Ohm. He doesn't want to fight him. Ohm's his first friend in the underground- he can't fight him. He just can't.

_Ohm looks through you._

John reached for the ACT button but held back. His hand hovered above it, but never touching it. John was breathing heavily and he doesn't know why. Something is telling him that talking won't be doing any good. Not to Ohm. 

The FIGHT button glowed on his left, and for a moment John truly considered it, but he threw that option aside. No, he's gonna show Ohm that he won't be fighting him. 

With a determined look, John pressed onto SPARE.

Ohm looked taken aback, but he remained quiet.

John's black screen disappeared from sight. Before he could get his bearings, Ohm had initiated his attack. John felt the earth rumble below him, and a sense of familiarity washed over. Just from instincts, John finds himself dodging and jumping over the earth that was protruding from the ground with ease. He wasn't sure how or why he was able to dodge that, but within seconds the earth came back down, and it was his turn again.

_SPARE._

Ohm stayed silent, his eyes now avoiding him. John huffed in frustration but prepared himself for Ohm's next attack.

Fireballs started forming around him before launching themselves towards his direction. John nearly got burnt on the first fireball but finds it strangely easier to dodge the rest, weaving through the spaces between where the fire was launching themselves to. It was like a dance, which nearly made John lose his focus. 

Once it was his turn, he did the same thing.

_Ohm is acting aloof._

John noticed Ohm staring at him, almost sadly but not towards John, more so on himself. John didn't have time to think however when Ohm started his next attack. 

He felt the earth rumble beneath him, but it wasn't the same as the first attack. It felt different in a not good way. John felt a sense of urgency and jumped out of the way just in time for a trail of earth to protrude out before going back under. Before John could even process the attack two more trails formed, and John barely dodged them. He winced loudly when he accidentally landed on that small bit of earth before it disappeared under the ground. Why the fuck did that hit him?!

_18/20 HP_

This is fine. He can get through Ohm- he has to! John ignored the pain he felt on his body and pressed onto SPARE.

Ohm started breathing a bit funny. "What are you doing?" 

John kept his gaze on his friend but said nothing. He didn't need to. Ohm may be blindfolded but no doubt he can, in a way, see what John was doing.

And the moment he did, Ohm lowly growled that failed to be intimidating.

"Attack or run away!" 

Absolutely not. 

John felt the ground beneath him rumble and moved out of the way just in time to evade an attack from mother earth. It was the same attack Ohm did the first time, so it was much easier to dodge. This definitely made Ohm much more frustrated.

_SPARE._

"What are you trying to prove this way?!" 

John failed to realize that there were tears dripping down from the other's cheeks. His grey blindfold was a bit damp at the bottom of where his eyes would be. John unconsciously held onto the red heart locket, feeling his soul ache painfully. 

More fireballs formed, but instead in rows. John was either forced to jump or go low enough- both options weren't even good. John jumped over the rows of fire that was somehow coming in different angles. He got burnt a couple of times just from that single attack, and he winced when he saw his HP.

_8/10 HP._

No, no! John is so close in getting through Ohm- he can't die! ~~Not again.~~

John, despite his body crying painfully from the burns, still pressed on SPARE. 

"Please, John, don't make this difficult! Just FIGHT!"

John was so tired he didn't feel the rumble underneath him. The moment he did, he was too late.

_1/10 HP._

He was launched somewhere on the ground but he didn't feel the impact. He could only feel how bad his soul hurt. Not just from the physical injuries, but from Ohm's anguish and cries. For some odd reason, the attacks suddenly stopped followed by Ohm's audible gasp. 

As John finally picked himself up from the floor, he tried to see what happened that let Ohm end his turn early. John followed Ohm's stare on the ground and saw the panda charm. It was covered in ash and dirt, no doubt from the fire and earth attacks from Ohm, but it still looked pretty much like a panda charm.

Shakily, John reached out to grab the charm. Once his fingers held tightly onto the small thing, he looked up, seeing Ohm's unreadable expression. With a sigh, he pressed on SPARE.

Ohm didn't do anything.

_..._

"I know you want to go home. But... please, John. Go upstairs. I promise I will take care of you here."

The promises sound genuine yet empty. John knows it. Ohm also knows it.

_SPARE._

"We may not have much... but we can still have a good life here."

Ohm was trembling. John wanted to reach out.

_SPARE._

The tears started falling again. 

"Why are you making this so difficult?! Please, go back upstairs."

The last plea. John ignored it.

_SPARE._

"... Pathetic, isn't? I can't protect a single human that falls down here..." Ohm trails off, taking a shuddering breath to calm his nerves. "No. No, I... I understand. You would be unhappy here, wouldn't you, John."

John tried to speak, but no words could leave his mouth.

The other only looked at him with a sad smile.

"These ruins tend to get very small once you're used to it. For years I have been scared... Scared of losing my friends. But for you, my dear John, I will push my fear aside..."

John blinked, the world reverting back into its original color. Ohm truly looked defeated. For a blind-folded monster, he was very expressive, even his ears were folded downwards. John walked over to him, his hand still clutching onto the panda charm. 

Ohm frowned deeply upon seeing how injured John was. The human did not react when Ohm gently held onto John's injured arms, healing magic flowing through. Immediately, John felt better. His HP was getting back up at a steady rate... but even though he was getting healed, John wasn't happy. 

He looked up, inspecting Ohm's features. John wasn't trying to figure out what the bunny monster was feeling- he just wanted to see every little thing that made Ohm... Ohm. Standing directly in front of the monster, John could see faded scars across his right upper cheek and a small cut on his chin. There's even a pink scar above his right eyebrow which he did not notice before. 

Ohm's grey bandana was creased due to being used so often. His snout-like nose would twitch every once in a while like a bunny would. And whenever Ohm would open his mouth to breathe through it, he could see his two front teeth being slightly larger than the rest, as well as having a visible gap.

Simple details that he never noticed before but will now. John doesn't want to forget Ohm.

"Will you be okay?" John softly asked. Ohm let out a small huff that could've been mistaken for a laugh. When John's injuries were done, Ohm kneeled down so that they were around the same height. Ohm's hands were still holding on to John's arms, and he lets him.

"I'll be fine, my friend." Ohm reassured though it was unclear whether it was meant to reassure John or himself. John freed his right hand and opened it to show Ohm the panda charm, a silent request to take it. 

Ohm smiled but shook his head no, pushing the hand away. "No. I want you to keep it. It has no use for me except of reminding me of my failures... But it can give you a bit of protection from out there."

John looked beyond Ohm to stare at the door. "What exactly is out there?"

His question was not answered. Instead, Ohm only leaned forward to give the human a hug. John could feel his chest tightening and tears already forming in the corner of his eyes, but he kept it in. He kept calm. He has to, if not for him then for Ohm.

"I'm not gonna lie, my friend. There will be monsters out there who wish to harm you. Who wish to take your Soul. But... there are also monsters who are kind and will be your friends if you let them. Though, I can assure you one thing... there will be someone looking out for you. They will keep you safe- I promise."

John used his free hand to wipe away his tears before resuming hugging his friend tightly. Ohm did the same. 

"... I can always visit though, right? You don't have to be alone- or be scared."

Ohm broke the hug, but kept his arms around the human.

"John... I'm afraid you can not come back here. You have to move on and... well... I prefer not many monsters having access to the Ruins." Ohm tucked a strand of hair covering John's face behind his ear, smiling. "So please, be good. You have shown me how strong you are."

John shook his head. "No, I'm not strong."

Ohm pat John's head. "You will see one day that you are indeed strong. And when that time arrives, I will be right behnd you, cheering you on."

John couldn't handle it anymore. The waterworks have turned on at maximum level and tears started pouring down his cheeks like a waterfall. He wrapped his arms around Ohm, his Soul aching. He doesn't want to say goodbye to Ohm- no, no this isn't a goodbye. Just a 'See you later' kind of thing, right? 

It's not, John knew that, but he let himself believe it.

"Thank you for everything... _Ryan_."

The name unconsciously slipped out. John didn't even notice the slip-up or the sudden rise of shoulders from the bunny monster. Still, Ohm only chuckled, patting John on the back before pulling away. 

They stared at each other for a moment or two, before Ohm gave one final smile to John and walk around him, presumably back upstairs. John turned, only to find the hallway empty of his friend.

Suddenly, laughter echoed in the hall, immediately putting John on guard. He clipped on the panda charm when he found the laughter familiar to the demonic flower he saw earlier. He tried listening to the source, but no matter where he looked, he was alone.

"You think you're so clever, huh?" It cackled, sending chills down John's spine but he stood his ground, determined to not listen to it.

"It's kill or be killed, my dear friend. Just because you played by your own rules and spared the life of a single person... You feel great, don't cha'? You didn't kill anybody this time!" It laughed once more, until the laughter suddenly cut, giving the room an eerie silence. 

"... I wonder... what will you do if you meet a relentless killer?"

John wasn't even given time to reply before it continued.

"You'll die and die... and die again. Until you get tired of trying. What will you do then? Kill out of frustration? Or give up... and let me inherit the power to control this world."

"Wait, what power?"

"Don't worry little Jon... This is more interesting."

John covered his ears when it laughed, the sound bouncing off the walls making it go louder than it should be. When the laughter died down, John removed his hands from his ears, calming himself down.

The door ahead of him stood tall and scary... but John wasn't scared of it. Or what's beyond it. 

No, John was determined. 

So with a huff of breath to psych himself up, John pushed the double set of doors with all his strength, opening it barely that allowed a gust of cold wind to hit his nose. 


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> some more characterization if u can figure it out
> 
> also i feel like this chapter was a bit shorter than the others so sorry abt that!

White snow and the cold gust of annoying wind greeted the human once the door was wide enough for him to slip through. 

John huffed, a puff of white smoke leaving his lips before eventually disappearing. He proceeded to close the door- which, by the way, is heavy as fuck. Who was the damn architects in the entire underground? Or maybe all of the monsters here are that strong and he's just weak? 

Once the door finally shuts closed, John sighed, leaning his forehead on the cool yet rough surface of the door. Memories of his encounter with Ohm... feeling his soul ache but not because of the injuries, but at the thought of fighting him. It hasn't even been a full day before John left Ohm in the Ruins, has it? Ohm providing him his care and protection and what did John do? Leave him? 

John, stop it. No time to think of the past. You have to move.

But before that...

The bulky phone he got from Ohm weighs heavy on his pocket (though it's not because it is actually heavy). He wasn't quite sure if it would work, but John decided to try anyway. He found Ohm's name and dialed him.

_Ring... Ring..._

_Click._

John resisted the urge to cry. _Just go, John. Go._

The area he finds himself in now was... honestly, not quite what he was expecting. Everywhere he looked it was full of dense trees and snow. Unless he somehow wants to get himself lost in the creepy-looking forest, he would have to follow a pathway that's conveniently in front of him.

John clicked his tongue. He should really stop expecting things to be somewhat normal. He can talk to monsters and now it's snowing underground, what else is he gonna see next? An accidental fusion of monsters?

Honestly done with his thoughts, John began walking. The path was... long. Abnormally long to the point that when John turns to look back, he couldn't even see the purple doors anymore. It gave John an unsettling feeling. He was alone in the woods, walking where he was vulnerable to any attacks. He tried to be aware of his surroundings, but no matter where he looked there was nothing to see. Yet despite all that, he couldn't help but feel as if he was being watched-

John gasped and whirled around, hearing a snap-like sound. He didn't see anything, although, he saw the large twig he stepped over, snapped in half. John began to sweat a bit, his fear and anxiety rising with every second.

"Just... keep moving," John whispered to himself and continued on. 

He isn't alone. He knows that now, ever since that twig was snapped in half as if it was nothing. Someone was following him, watching him... John tried to ignore it at first, but every so often he would turn in hopes of catching the intruder. He couldn't see anyone, but he knows they're nearby. 

John doesn't like this one bit. 

The human didn't take note of how much time has passed- his mind too distracted to focus much. He's still aware that he's still walking but... seriously, how long is this path? 

Finally, he saw what looks like a wooden structure from afar. John picked up his pace, curious to know what it was but to also put some distance between him and his stalker (not like that mattered).

The wooden structure was apparently a bridge-like... thing. Besides the planks that would help him cross over a not so big gap (but certainly deep enough), the... poles? What- John has no idea what it was supposed to be. It reminded him of prison cells except there aren't enough poles to make the cell, leaving a wide empty space in between.

Was this a sad excuse of a barrier? If so, John feels pity for the creator. 

**"H u m a n."**

The air around him suddenly went a few degrees colder. John froze, chills running down his entire body and his soul thumping hard against his chest (he should have NOT insulted the barrier). He tried to stay calm- emphasis on tried. He felt like he needed to run and get away from whatever threat it was behind him, but he can't move.

... He doesn't want to. 

**"Don't you know how to greet a new pal? Turn around and shake my hand..."**

There will be monsters who will wish to harm you. But there will also be monsters who are kind and would be your friend if you let them. The words rang in John's head like a fucking recorder. Ah, fuck it. If he dies because of this then he'll blame the universe. 

Not like you can. 

Just wanting to get it over with, John turned, barely registering the mismatched glasses before grasping onto the other's hand. 

A loud raspberry sound echoed in the forest. A smug smile on the monster's face.

John can only stare, utterly horrified that the last thing he was gonna hear before death was a fucking whoopee cushion. Once the annoying sound died off, the monster... person? Whatever he was, he laughed and showed John his palm, which held the horrendous device. 

"The whoopee cushion in the hand trick. It's always funny." He took off his mismatched glasses, revealing emerald green eyes that couldn't possibly be obtained through genes. John finds himself mesmerized by those strange orbs, though he quickly snapped out of it when he started talking.

"The name's Smitty. Local monster in the underground." He introduced himself. John took a good look at Smitty- wondering if he was actually a monster. For the most part... he resembles a human figure. His hair was as white as the purest snow, skin just as pale but not so much that it was like a sheet of paper- through pale enough that it shouldn't really be considered normal, either (or maybe it was and he's just being a racist bitch). He wore human clothes- most particularly the hoodie he wore which contrasted the white snow around them. (The main body being navy blue, the sleeves and the hood were bright orange- the cuffs and the strings remained white). 

John stared at the propeller hat on Smitty's cloud-like hair before responding. 

"I'm John. You don't really look like a 'local monster', no offense." 

Smitty was looking at John a bit strangely, which made the human nervous from where he stood. For a moment or two (that felt like it lasted for too long), Smitty was just looking at him. Observing him. Judging him. Until he chuckled, letting an easy smile form on his lips. 

"Eh, believe me, I'm just like the rest of the monsters here. Albeit a bit different- then again, everyone has their uniqueness in them." Smitty winked and John had no idea why his soul felt like fluttering. "Anyway, I'm supposed to be looking out for humans right now. And I'm supposed to be capturing you... but I'm lazy." 

John raised a questioning eyebrow towards Smitty's direction, not believing a single word this monster was saying to him. Smitty noticed the look and just smiled innocently, his hands in his pockets.

"To be fair, if I were a tad bit younger I would've happily chased you across the underground just to capture you. In fact, I actually made a lot of 'human traps' around these areas."

"Is this contraption your invention as well?" John monotonously asked, pointing at the wooden structure behind him with his thumb over his shoulder. Smitty laughed.

"One of the best! Just go through it, it didn't stop anyone before, it wouldn't stop you now."

Okay, yea, Smitty is actually a pretty chill guy. Despite all the creepiness that happened earlier, John finds himself enjoying Smitty's company. He was definitely one of the kinder monsters here, which made John wonder what kind of monsters he would encounter. 

"Hey, Smitty? What's that?"

They have walked a bit farther by now, showing John an area that has a sentry-like stand stationed right over there.

"Oh, that's one of my sentry stations. I usually nap over there unless one of the Royal Guard dogs decided to bug me- though rarely it would be the Captain bugging me..." Smitty had mumbled the last part to himself, though John was still able to hear it. Royal Guard dogs? Captain? So apparently law does exist in the underground, which means he's completely fucked.

"Uh... well, shit. But actually I was referring to that." 

"Oh, that thing? That's just a conveniently shaped lamp." 

"Wait what-"

"Welp looks like some of the guard dogs are looking for me."

John was dumbfounded, seeing Smitty looking at his empty wrist as if it's a watch. 

"How about you go on ahead? I'll make sure to keep the guard dogs out of your hair for a while." Smitty said, grinning at John's confusion. Without another word, he turned to the direction where they just came from and waved over his shoulder. "I'll see you in a bit, John!"

It took a while to process the bizarre behavior that came out of the friendly monster, but once it did John gaped at him. "You're going the wrong way?!?" 

"Don't worry bout' it, I know a shortcut!"

"What short-" In a blink of an eye, Smitty was suddenly gone. Literally gone, making John frantically look around dumbfounded. He swore Smitty was just there but looking around- even doing a 360 degrees turn- he was alone. 

... That fucking asshole.

John couldn't help but laugh to himself. The change of atmosphere lifted his mood significantly. Smitty's pretty weird... which only made John more intrigued in getting to know him more. 

Seeing as there's nothing else to do but move forward, John began walking, his hands deep in his pockets. It was pretty cold, making John shiver every now and then but he finds that it wasn't too unbearable. Now that he was out of that long-ass path, there are more areas where it's more open with clearer paths. 

The yellow star glowed as John walked over to it, inspecting its sharp-like edges for a while. The last time he interacted with such things, it was back in the Ruins, in front of that tree. He placed his hand over it, this time expecting the energy going through his body.

_Seeing a new friendly face fills you with determination._

A black screen appeared once more. His hand was already reaching towards the SAVE button but finds himself hesitating to press it. John didn't know why he was hesitating. Perhaps he was wondering what was the purpose of having a SAVE option. Or if he needed a SAVE option at all. 

Eh, a question for another day. John pressed on SAVE.

* * *

"Who's a good doggo? You're a good doggo!" John cooed as he pets Lesser Dog, strangely not weirded out that his neck was getting ridiculously long with every turn. Not like John minded- in fact, he's glad he's living another day. Lesser Dog didn't seem to mind either- even though his neck is literally sprawled all over the area. After what seems like forever, John finally calming down, he finally SPARED the Royal Guard with a laugh.

"So that's where you've been this entire time." 

John looked behind him to see Smitty, who half-waved at him before stuffing his hands in his pockets. Lesser Dog barked and ran towards Smitty, who easily side-stepped to avoid getting pounced by the still-excitable dog. 

"You know, when you said Royal Guard dogs I expected like... Y'know, dogs as pets? Not the dogs being the Royal Guards themselves." John smiled widely as Lesser Dog launched himself towards John instead, licking his cheek as if there was no tomorrow. John tried to stop the good doggo from slobbering him, not like he minded too much.

For some odd reason, Lesser Dog suddenly perked his head up, as if he heard something, before using John's stomach as a launching boost towards one of the paths, barking happily all the way. John only groaned in pain, his body laying on the cold yet soft snow. 

"You good?" Smitty asked, laughing as he offered a hand to John. The human grunted as he accepted the help and felt himself lurch a bit as Smitty pulled him up with a bit too much strength. 

"All good and dandy... Geez, I thought you said you're gonna keep the dogs off me?"

"I did." Smitty shrugged, though with his smile John can tell he was lying. "Okay, fine, I tried to find Lesser Dog but it seems as if he found you first. Despite them being the Royal Guards, their actually pretty chill, so don't worry about it." Smitty said that with a wink which caused John to immediately look away. "Thanks to the humans that fell before you, they pretty much got a bit attached to humans. So don't be surprised if one of them ends up sniffing you and calling you 'Squeaker' or whatever."

"Squeaker?"

"Eh, I'll tell you another time. Anyway, up here is one of my... uh... traps. I haven't touched it in a couple of years now, so I'm not sure if it's gonna kill you or not. I doubt so but y'know, life can be weird and complicated." 

The trap that Smitty showed him was...

"... Please tell me you're joking."

"What? Crossword is difficult to do."

"I can't believe you..."

For a moment John thought Smitty was being serious about having traps. All he could see was a single crossword puzzle laying in the middle of the ground, most likely drenched from being in the snow all day (or years). John decided to amuse Smitty a bit more and check out the crossword puzzle. 

It just got worse. 

"I- oh my god- are you fucking- I can't do this anymore." John couldn't breathe, caught off guard by the first word. Or lack of it- it was just a jumble of words which John realized was just the entire first row of the 'puzzle'. His humor was apparently so damaged he's laughing over a fucking crossword puzzle, which he honestly can't help but laugh over it! It's so stupid and dumb!

"Just saying, this would have been the perfect time to capture you." Smitty grinned from ear-to-ear as John continues laughing like a maniac. 

"Okay, okay, I'm done. That 'trap' was actually decent." John wiped away the tears that managed to form during his laughing fit. "You're a genius, I hate you."

"Aww, that's probably the nicest thing you've ever said to me! Anyway, we should continue on. There's still a lot more traps and since I like you a lot I don't really want you to die yet."

That did little to reassure John but he shrugged anyway. "Sure, lead the way."

Smitty was... awfully talkative. And a little shit but more to that later. The (surprisingly) shorter monster was chatting about 'Snowdin' and the residents there. Even though John had no idea what he was saying half the time, he could tell Smitty was clearly enjoying himself. It was pretty clear to John that Smitty didn't have many people to talk to. 

Or... was comfortable to talk to. Because of Smitty's non-stop chatter, he knows there are a few monsters that he seemed to be closest to. A fire-elemental named Fitz who works at the local bar and Grizzy, a young bear. He mentioned an 'Eli' but didn't further talk about them more. He also has other friends outside of Snowdin but besides that, he seemed to prefer being by himself most of the time. 

"Humans have gone down here before, right?" John randomly asked, slightly worried as he watched Smitty turn off a bunch of traps that don't seem to be fit for capturing a human (more so fit on killing one). "What were they like?"

"Eh... Not really familiar with the humans that walked through here. I only know that one human nicknamed Squeaker cuz' he had the dogs under his finger. Had experience with animals up there- looks like it came in handy when handling with the Royal Guards... uhh..." Smitty looked lost in thought. "There was also another... he stayed in Snowdin for a while until another human fell then from there they went together... who else?"

Smitty was mumbling to himself at that point. John had to strain his ear to figure out what he's saying.

"Oh! I do know the last human that passed by here before you. He... damn, I don't recall knowing his name." Smitty sheepishly chuckled. "But he had a strong accent! Reminded me of a ghost I happen to meet a few times but anyway- he's actually pretty nice, except he knows when things are wrong or right, which I respect him for. He knows when he has to put his foot down and actually told Jerry off."

"Jerry?"

"You'll see him soon enough. And believe me, you're gonna hate him."

Smitty finally turned off the trap. The nearby buzz saw soon rolled to a stop and John finds himself releasing a breath he didn't know was holding. He thought the crossword puzzle was a joke but this is something else.

"Oh! I was wondering but... Do you happen to know if this belongs to any of the humans you met before?" John asked, unclipping the panda charm to show it to Smitty. The monster squinted his eyes to inspect the item further, though soon after he shrugged. 

"Nah, never met anyone who would have it- wait, what's that in your pocket?" 

John looked down, seeing a lump in his hoodie pocket. He used his free hand to scoop out a chunk of snow that the snowman he met earlier told him to keep for- uh, what was it again? Oh, yea. The snowman wanted to explore so they gave a part of them to John, despite how creepy it was. The snow couldn't seem to melt from his body heat.

"Uh, a talking snowman wanted to see the rest of the underground so they gave me a part of them."

"Huh. Okay, uh, you do know you have a dimensional box, right?"

"A dimen- what now?" 

"A dimensional box. Lend me your phone for a bit."

Slightly cautious, John passed Smitty his phone.

"Geez, your phone is pretty old. If my buddy sees this he's gonna freak- which reminds me, if you see an overweight hybrid of a dog with a right lizard arm, wearing glasses, bleached hair cuz' he's a darn weeb, let him replace your phone. He has some good tech."

That's oddly specific, though John kept it in the back of his mind if he ever meets such a monster. Smitty fiddled around with the phone, mumbling things to himself such as 'Who the fuck would still have this kind of monstrosity?' until he let out a small cheer.

"Finally! The one who gave you the phone somehow decided to turn off the dimen- ah whatever, try it!" 

John looked through his phone, surprised to see an option for 'Dimensional Box A'. Not knowing what exactly it does, he simply tapped on it. There were two columns- one is his INV and the other being the dimensional box. In his INV, he saw the part of the snowman. Curious, he clicked on the option to put the snowman in the dimensional box.

The snow in his hand went static and green until it eventually disappeared, making John awed at the sight.

"How does that work?"

"Magic."

The human huffed in annoyance while Smitty stuck out his tongue, winking while doing so. Of course, the answer has to be magic but did Smitty have to... be like that? Acting all smug with that cute face of his- geez, what was his problem?

"Anyway, do you mind if I leave you alone for a bit again? There's another puzzle up ahead that... uh... needs some attention. Gotta make sure it doesn't accidentally kill you when you reach there."

John finds himself worried when there's an actual concern look on Smitty's face. "Is it that bad?"

"It can be pretty shocking."

Don't tell him he's gonna get electrocuted.

"Anyway, see ya, bud!"  
  
"... You're literally going the wrong-" When John turned, he couldn't find Smitty anywhere.

That fucking bastard... John grumbled something under his breath, crossing his arms in a pouting matter. Smitty's so confusing yet... 

The human's cheeks turned pinkish-red, though not because of the cold. He likes having Smitty around. Smitty's... entirely something else. 

Determined to see his new-found friend, John trudged through the snow. 


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> howdy, a lil late christmas present in the form of this chapter  
> a lot of stuff packed in it, but i couldn't really bring myself to cut it into two parts. 
> 
> mainly because of what the next chapter will have
> 
> anyway hope u enjoy this chapter!

Much to John's annoyance, there were more encounters triggered by being in the snow than walking around the Ruins. It wasn't that hard to handle them- just annoying. Especially that Jerry guy. (It reminded John of a schoolmate of his when he was in high school, literally tags around with anyone who's able to tolerate them just for the sake of it.)

The lack of Smitty made the entire journey a bit... boring. Not even one of the ice monsters' jokes would make him laugh. 

What was it that made Smitty so... different? 

Not because John happens to find him attractive and a cool person to hang around with. There's this mystery vibe surrounding Smitty, secrets buried under layers and layers of optimism and positive energy to the point no one would be able to suspect it. But John does- he can tell. He could decipher every sentence. Theorize every motive.

He did it before. And it always ends up biting him in the ass. 

But something tells John there is more to Smitty than just what he knows or guessed. It's something that he wouldn't be able to predict or even believe. 

That just makes him all the more determined to know more about that odd monster... 

"Are you done contemplating about life-"

"My god Jerry shut up!" John groaned, tapping on IGNORE which made the other monster, Ice Cap, furious. 

"FINE! I DON'T CARE!" The Ice Crap shouted in frustration. John rolled his eyes at the childish behavior and pressed on SPARE. 

Gained 0 EXP 25 G.

The two monsters had already ran off towards the trees once John's world turned back to normal, finally feeling the familiar padding of the snow underneath John's boots. The human sighed, a puff of white smoke leaving which reminded him of his vape.

Damn, if he knew he was gonna survive that fall he could've brought his vape pen with him. 

John wonders if monsters can vape... 

Do they make pot brownies? Wait, why is he thinking about brownies?

Fuck, if only he saved some of that butterscotch cinnamon pie... 

Is there a bakery nearby? He's craving for some sugar right now.

After a bit more walking, John eventually spotted the orange-navy hoodie from a distance. Picking up his pace, John soon finds Smitty fiddling with a ball-like item. When the monster noticed John in the distance, he frantically waved his arms around and shouted.

"Wait! Don't go into the dirt!"

Dirt? 

John looked down and formed an 'oh' like shape with his mouth. Between him and Smitty, there was a large patch of pale blue dirty- the snow likey shovelled away if the piles of snow at the side could say anything about it. On John's left, there was a cliff that overlooked the rest of the snowy underground. On his right was the continuation of the forest. 

"Is this another one of your puzzles?" John asked, cupping his hands around his mouth to amplify the sound. John was just making sure he can be heard. 

"Something like that," Smitty replied. He brought the ball up so that John can see it better. "Imagine a maze except there's only one way and you can't see where the next path is. If you stray away from the path, you'll get electrocuted."

"Oh, so that's where the 'shocking' part came from. Is that what the ball is for? To track my steps and to electrocute me if I go the wrong way?"

"Yep!"

"... So without it, I can just walk normally, yea?"

Smitty made a choke-like sound, nearly dropping the ball. John smiled smugly and started walking across the dirt path. He wasn't electrocuted- he needed the ball for that, which was still held by the monster who looked embarrassed and ashamed. Once John reached the other side, Smitty's cheeks were in an assortment of colors that followed the primary colors- red, blue and yellow. The colors contrasted against Smitty's pale cheeks, changing and overlapping one another making the sight mesmerizing to watch (or maybe John's just creepy) in an odd way. 

"You tried your best." John patted Smitty's shoulder, though the smile on his face says otherwise. Smitty pouted but stayed by John's side as they walked. 

"I actually worked hard on that puzzle."

"I can tell. If it makes you feel better I can try it out another time? With the ball and all." 

Smitty's eyes actually sparkled at John's offer. "Oh fuck yea!"

"You're really into puzzles/human traps, aren't you?"

"I mean, yea! Puzzles are challenging and it helps your brain focus. Not many monsters seem to appreciate the challenge it has but I do." Even though the monster was no doubt enthusiastic to share his passion for puzzles, John noticed there was another layer to it. He doesn't know what it is- even though he's overthinking it... but perhaps there is also another reason why Smitty is doing puzzles? Not just because he's into puzzles as a hobby. 

There he goes again, overthinking about something that likely won't matter. Maybe he should just drop it. 

"Just asking, where are we going?" 

"We're going to Snowdin Town- I said it before, didn't I? Oh! You're gonna love it, no doubt. We have a tree in the center of town where we celebrate Gyftmas, a local shop where you can buy these cute-ass rabbit cinnabuns- AND! There's also Fitz'! Which is basically Fitz' bar but- yea, you get the idea."

Actually, John doesn't. He was too distracted watching Smitty move his arms around animatedly as he talked. 

"Uh, first of all... Gyftmas? Is it the monster version of Christmas? And second of all... the cinnabuns aren't made of rabbits, right?"

Smitty chuckled. "No, the cinnabuns are just shaped to look like rabbits. I'm not quite sure how Gyftmas came to be... somewhere along the lines of a Gyftrot being harassed by teenagers because they used their tree-like antlers to hang ornaments so we were inspired to have Gyftmas."

John was quiet, processing the puzzling statement. "... So you guys are making fun of the monster that was being used to hang ornaments by using a tree to do the same thing to celebrate the occasion?"

"... Why are you such a party pooper?"

"So you admit to being the bully?"

"No- I- Ugh!" Smitty raised his arms up in frustration as he gave up. His pace increased, huffing along the way as he leaves John to laugh at himself. It was only a minute after that John realized how quiet Smitty was, which started to make him worry. He caught up with the monster and caught a glimpse of Smitty looking upset. 

Arms crossed and purposely avoiding eye-contact, John knew he fucked up. 

"Hey, Smitty. Shit, I'm sorry that I said all that- I was just... messing around, y'know?" That part was true, but John should've known to be more sensitive towards what Smitty was feeling. "I should've worded it nicely but... yeah, sorry."

The tense silence between them lasted for who knows how long as they walked but eventually Smitty did reply, though his voice was soft and he was still avoiding eye-contact. 

"No, you shouldn't be sorry. You're not exactly wrong and I just overreacted so... it's fine." 

John scoffed. "Obviously something else is bothering you." He paused as he thought of something else. "Is there something bothering you? Something I said?"

Smitty stopped walking, forcing John to do the same. Their eyes met once more. Emerald eyes unreadable.

"Partly. The underground isn't that big once you get used to it and most of my life I've lived in Snowdin. There's also other places but the town and its residents have a special place in my heart, no matter what. I grew to love this place and its culture. And when you asked all that stuff it got me thinking that... maybe there's someplace else that's cooler to live in than Snowdin. Somewhere in the surface, what we have here is nothing compared to what they have up there." Smitty shrugged lamely. "It was just a random thought, no biggie."

"No biggie? Smit- this isn't a 'no biggie' situation!" John exclaimed. "What you're telling me about the place you live in all your life? It's something special to you- something unique that only you could feel. I may be a human and I may be privileged but sometimes having everything is nothing compared to the special connection you feel about home- even if it's small. Yea, maybe I think Gyftmas is weird but I will be willing to learn more about your home. I want to understand why Snowdin is so special to you."

Smitty smiled widely, quickly wiping his eyes which John guessed was a tear.

"If you say so, come on! There's one more puzzle and then we'll be there in no time!" 

A yelp left John's lips as Smitty held onto John's hand and pulled him forward. The two were running along the path (or more like Smitty dragging John behind him. He's pretty fast). John may work out every once in a while but even he knows there's no way he's gonna last this long. So he ignored the increasing pain on his chest as his lungs struggled to breathe and instead focused his attention on their connected hands.

Smitty's hand was really soft. Like, abnormally soft yet solid that it can't possibly be skin. It was also cold but not too cold that it was freezing to the touch. It reminded him of holding a cup of iced lemon tea even though he rarely drinks it. As the seconds tick by, the hand grew slightly warmer, probably because John was the one holding it.

Before John could realize how painful his chest became, Smitty slowed to a stop which allowed John to rest. In front of them laid what looks like the remains of the puzzle he mentioned. In front of them laid a bunch of tiles of different colors, though they looked much more dull and greyed out. Some plates also look grey in various areas. It stretched around the area that there's no way around it except forward. On either side was a machine. 

Smitty let out a disappointed sound as he walked forward to inspect the machinery. "Darnit... I forgot to recalibrate the puzzle."

"Recalibrate? Bitch, this looked as if it was abandoned for years."

Smitty looked like he was about to reply with a snarky remark but stopped when he surveyed the puzzle again. "... Well, you're right about that. Shame, this puzzle was the best one I did and it was much more fun than the rest of my puzzles."

John walked over to where Smitty stood. In front of him laid a red mat, large enough that John can stand on it without any difficulty. He felt pressure when he tried stepping over the red mat, so he stood back to ensure his safety. "What was it supposed to do?"

"Well, each tile has different colors which does a bunch of different stuff. For example, the red tile means you can not step on it. The yellow tile will electrocute you. The orange tile will make you smell like oranges-"

"Wait what-"

"The blue tile is basically the water so you can walk on it. If you smell like oranges and step on the blue tile, piranhas will eat you. If there's a yellow tile adjacent to the blue tile, you will also get electrocuted. Green tiles probably do nothing. Purple tiles will force you to go to the next tile you're facing and will make you smell like lemons, which piranhas do not like. Pink tiles also do nothing."

"... I'm sorry I lost you at the 'will make me smell like oranges' part. It's not actually true, is it?"

"Nah, of course not. It's a bunch of programming that me and a buddy of mine did years ago. He did most of the programming, anyway. Whenever you step on a tile it tracks your movement, and since it's programmed to follow the rules I just said a while ago, magic also comes into play to ensure you follow the rules."

"Magic? Is that what I'm feeling now?"

Smitty hummed, noticing John staring at the red tile in front of him. "Yea. I used gravity magic so you can't just skip over tiles. Think of it as an invisible wall. Though, I'm still surprised the magic is still working even in the state it's in." He put a hand on his hip as he looked over the remains of the puzzle. "... I can definitely fix up the puzzle if I feel like it, but Nah. Anyway, since most of the tiles are broken it won't be difficult crossing it. Just... uh... hold onto me." 

John noticed Smitty offering his hand to him. He didn't think too much about it and accepted it. It feels nice holding his hand, anyway. 

Quietly, the two traversed through the puzzle. It was mostly Smitty leading the way- John's just following wherever tile he steps because he honestly did not remember a single thing from what he explained just moments ago. What was it about green tiles, again? 

It didn't take long to reach the other side. Much to John's disappointment, Smitty let go of his hand. "Alright, sweet! We're almost there now."

John hummed, recalling the feeling of Smitty's soft hand against his own as he followed the monster through the white snow.

* * *

"Okay, so don't worry too much if some monsters keep on staring at you. I mean, it's a given since you're human and all but I can assure you everyone here is nice and will not kill you on the spot."

John nodded, too busy admiring the large welcome sign that was definitely hand-made. The words were painted and there are even Christmas lights and snow on top of it. It was a welcoming sight.

As the two enter the town, John could tell why Smitty love this place so much. There were so many smiling monsters everywhere. No matter where he look there was always something... cheerful about the town. Maybe it's the festive lights or the snow or even the warm lights coming from the windows- he has no idea but he loves it.

John let out a 'whoa!' when a few children ran by them, causing them to move at the side to prevent a clash. Distracted, John didn't realize a bear monster running up to Smitty. He only turned when he heard Smitty shriek in surprise, worried that something bad had happened only to find him trying to push off a bear who was nuzzling his cheek with their snout. 

"Griz! Grizzy, stop! It tickles!" Giving mercy, 'Grizzy' got off of Smitty and stood up. They were shorter than John by a couple of inches, but definitely taller than Smitty. They also wore an old orange hoodie that seemed to be a bit oversized with the left sleeve tied in a knot- which John realized was because the bear lacks a left arm. 

"Who're you?" Grizzy asked, tilting their... his head to the side. John realized that the top of Grizzy's fur was longer and curlier, though he wasn't sure why he finds it surprising.

"I'm... I'm John."

"Are you a kid?"

"What?"

Fortunately, John's confusion was saved by Smitty cutting into the conversation, standing between his two friends as he looked between them. "Ooookay! Grizzy, my man, I missed you lots. You met John, my other friend. Anyway, don't you have errands to run, little bear?"

Grizzy huffed. "I'm fourteen."

"Close enough. Now off you go, you little shit. I have to show my new friend around."

Grizzy pouted, probably displeased that he won't be able to get to know John more, but nodded anyway. He waved the two of them goodbye before running off somewhere. John winced when he saw the bear fall face-first on the snow when he tripped over his legs. Although, Grizzy picked himself up just fine and continued on.

"I don't look that young, don't I?" John questioned out-loud, which made Smitty giggle. 

"Nah, Grizzy only asked that cuz' you were wearing stripes."

"Stripes?" John looked down at his primary-colored hoodie. "I wouldn't really call it stripes."

"Yea, well, in the underground, kids are actually separated from the adults by wearing stripe shirts, though it's normally in two colors. You only get out of the stripe shirts once you reach thirteen years old in human years."

"Human- what? What about monster years?"

"It differs from monster to monster. Some obviously live up to a hundred years because of their biological stuff while others live up to ten before dying of old age. However, we learn to convert our monster ages to human years for 'normalcy' and also to apply the stripe rules. Obviously, it's a hassle and there's a lot of factors you gotta consider but all in all, we eventually learn to convert our ages in human years anyway."

John hummed in thought. It honestly made no sense as to why they would do such a thing but he supposed it would make it easier for John to compare.

"Alright... So Grizzy is fourteen in human years but he's definitely at most a hundred years old, right?"

"Actually about twenty-six but yea, that's the idea."

"How old are you then?"

Smitty looked like he was thinking, his hand coming up to his hat to fidget with the spinner. John resisted the urge to laugh.

"I'm actually a couple of hundred years old but if I were to convert it to human years then I would be eighteen."

John choked on his saliva.

"John?" 

"Are you saying that if you were human I would actually be older than you?!"

"Wha- how old are you then?!" 

"I'm twenty-two!"

Smitty actually looked pissed at the fact John was trying not to laugh. 

"I am technically still OLDER than you, you dick!"

The human waved it off. Their banter ended the moment John noticed a huge Christmas tree and went to investigate further. From there, Smitty brightened up and started talking about the things he received through the presents, even mentioning the gifts he gave to Grizzy and Fitz. 

~~(He mentioned an 'Eli' again but stopped before elaborating any further)~~

Just hearing Smitty talk about the festivities made John slightly sad. He's not too upset about it- why would he? He's literally surrounded by smiling faces and bright lights everywhere, it's practically impossible to feel like crap in a town like this. 

No, it just reminded him of the times he celebrated Christmas up on the surface. They were pretty alright when he was younger. He got a lot of toys, a bunch of relatives came over to celebrate... everyone was wearing a Christmas family sweater and cheerful chatter filled the festive-scented air. He wasn't quite sure when all of those things slowly stopped but it just did. By the time he reached adulthood, he had lost contact with almost all of his aunts and uncles, cousins barely reply and his parents... 

It would be a miracle to see the two of them in the same room together but alas, the last time he celebrated Christmas, only one parent was present and they didn't even do anything worth considered 'Christmassy'. It didn't help that during those years John was suffering from his own mental health declining every day. It was harder to see the light of day and whenever John wakes up on his bed, still breathing (still alive), he wonders if it was even worth it. 

There's no reason to feel sad about it, though. John's not in the surface anymore, it literally doesn't matter anymore what he went through before. 

A hand dropped on his shoulder, snapping the human out of his thoughts. 

"John? You okay, bud?" Smitty asked, concern on his face. John weakly smiled and nodded, even though both he and Smitty know it was a lie. Fortunately, Smitty only gave him a look before giving him a reassuring pat on the shoulder, a silent offer to lend a listening ear, before dragging him towards one of the stores. John didn't resist, just glad he didn't have to talk at all.

The store had a strange warmth when John entered. It was a relatively small shop with shelves displaying various items for purchase, mostly food items but there are a couple that seemed to be random stuff like trinkets or notebooks. An old, purple toy somehow caught John's eye and he went to inspect it further.

Picking up the item, he deduced that the toy is actually a weird-looking purple worm that has seen better days. It has a weird open mouth at one end with white 'sharp' teeth surrounding the inner circle of it. John fumbled with it for a while, squeezing it for no particular reason except to wonder which child would want such a toy?

"Oh, that used to be Squeaker's." A female voice spoke behind him, making John jump. "Sorry! I'm the shopkeeper here and noticed you're here with Smitty."

John looked to where the shopkeeper was pointing, and feel himself sweat when he saw Smitty trying to balance a bunch of pastries on top of his head. Although he was worried about the pastries, he couldn't help but be impressed. Who knew Smitty could balance 20-something buns on his head? 

"Yea, I'm here with him. You know him?"

"Everybody does, especially the residents here." The shopkeeper was a rabbit monster, however, unlike Ohm, she bears no human traits and was entirely a rabbit. John was still comparing when the shopkeeper continued. "He kinda appeared out of nowhere and moved into one of the houses, but he seemed nice so we welcomed him anyway. He fit in our community really well and... yea, that's basically it." Even though the shopkeeper was loud, Smitty paid no attention to the conversation they were having and continued on doing whatever the hell he was doing. 

"Right... uh, you said 'Squeaker'. It belonged to him?" The 'it' was the toy he was currently holding, which the shopkeeper nodded to. 

"Yep. When he came years ago the toy got lost during his journey in Snowdin, so Squeaker told us that if we ever found it we can do whatever we want with it since he had to continue on. Found the toy by Fitz', under all the snow and by the trashcan months later. I fixed up the toy as much as I can and even though it's supposed to be on sale... I couldn't find myself to actually sell it." The shopkeeper sheepishly smiled, taking the toy from John's hand. 

"Sounds like you monsters have a soft spot for humans."

"Can't be helped. We're made out of love, hope and compassion- even though we're trapped underground by the humans. The majority of us changed our views towards humans when a human walked through Snowdin and was patient with us. Has a laugh so weird it was contagious." 

John widened his eyes. Immediately, John unclipped the charm to show the shopkeeper. "Does this look like something the human you mentioned would have."

The shopkeeper squinted her eyes at the item before nodding enthusiastically. "Yea, actually! He mentioned losing a charm before, I think? Wow, such a small world we live in." 

The two laughed. After a bit of chatting with the shopkeeper suggesting John to visit the library sometime (after he questioned about being made out of love, hope and compassion, Smitty convinced him to buy Cinnabuns. He bought two, bidding the shopkeeper goodbye as they left. He gave one to Smitty, who happily accepted it with thanks. 

Smitty was busy munching his Cinnabun when John noticed a yellow glow. Making sure Smitty was occupied, John went to the four-pointed star floating nearby. Now that he had interacted with it at least twice, John finds that he was much more confident in his actions as he gently placed his hand on the star.

_Seeing the happy faces of the residents fills you with determination._

_SAVE_


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> howdy fellas,, sorry for the somewhat late ish update. school started so im not quite sure how often i'll be able to write this ccrackfic of a crossover  
> if it makes u feel any better i lowkey kind of planned the entire plot as well as its sequel and side stories in a span of three hours and i cant get it out of my head
> 
> hopefully this chapter isnt so bad?? maybe a bit shorter but yknwobvifd

"You DEFINITELY have to enter the bar with me!"

Honestly, John was surprised that Smitty only begged him to go to the bar after exploring the rest of the town, almost as if he completely forgot about Fitz' bar. Or maybe he wanted to leave the best for last? 

Not like he's gonna say no to Smitty or something, the first impression he got from seeing the bar was 'Is this really a bar?'

It was... almost home-y like feeling. Just by being near the building he could feel the warmth radiating around it (which he assumed was magic since the snow around it stayed intact). The warmth reminded him of being in Ohm's house, but different. A different kind of warmth, something shared between the people you have befriended.

If John strained his ears, he could faintly make out chatter and laughter coming from the bar. 

"There's gonna be a lot of people inside," John said, not as a question but as a statement. Smitty stared at him funny, not quite getting John's point or even expecting him to say such things. He only hummed after a while when John continued to stare at the orange-tinted windows. 

"Well, yea, it's a bar? The underground is pretty small, I mentioned that before. There's not usually a lot of places where monsters can spend time together over good food, good friends, good drinks, bad laughs... Fitz' is pretty popular with Snowdin. Not to be biased but I think it's the best in the underground." Even though Smitty was talking with such enthusiasm, John couldn't find himself to relate.

Smitty first came off as the type to be a loner, only talk to those who he finds closest to. And even though that part was true, John failed to consider that Smitty does happen to have friends, just not close enough. (He is a couple of hundred years old, so he has a lot of time in his hands to know a lot of monsters).

That's most likely why Smitty liked the bar so much. One of his closest friends owns the place and the bar itself radiated a warm safety circle. Smitty likely knows everyone in the bar and according to him the food and drinks are the bomb. 

The food and drinks were tempting, but being in crowds isn't something John is particularly fond of. Not only in a bar setting but parties and even a god damn shopping mall can send John into a panic attack. Being surrounded at all sides was suffocating. John's stupid mind kept on producing pessimistic and anxious thoughts that don't matter but they just kept on coming-

He knows they're not staring at him- why would they? John has no interesting qualities except maybe his hair. He knows this, yet his brain convinces him otherwise. And because he's so weak and stupid he believes the lies his brain told him. 

Now being in the underground everything was ten times worse. The bar would be full of monsters. Even though he learned that not every monster is bad and they are in fact made of love, hope, and compassion, they are still capable of ending his life. In a way, he could be walking into his death full of happy monsters.

Happy monsters from all sides. In a small, stuffy bar. Surrounded at all sides. With John being the only human there. 

"Uh, John? Are you okay?" 

"I'm fine." The reply came quicker than expected. John wasn't even aware of his own answer, though he could tell what it was when Smitty rolled his eyes, obviously not believing whatever he said one bit. 

It made John self-conscious now. 

"Never been into a bar?" 

"Yea. I also never really liked being surrounded by so many people in a small place... Brings up a lot of bad memories." John confessed, averting his eyes someplace else. "Not gonna lie, this bar seems pretty cozy but I can't help but feel-"

John was cut off by Smitty placing his hand on John's shoulder- or what it should be, however, it hovered just inches above it. John could barely feel his fingers grazing his hoodie, and for some odd reason, he was disappointed. 

"It's gonna be alright," Smitty said with such genuine it made John's Soul thump loudly. "I know all the regulars in Fitz'. They're all pretty nice and have no intention of hurting anybody. And even if they do... I won't let it happen." The little shit bothered to send a cheeky little wink towards John's way, which made the human turn away, hiding the blush on his face. 

"Whatever..."

"Hey- I'm serious!" Smitty's optimistic tone turned into worry as John continues to avoid him. At this point, John's thoughts and feelings were sort of numb. He wasn't sure what he was feeling anymore as he continues to stare at the large sign, almost lost in the colors of orange surrounded by hues of purple, pink, blue and even yellow. 

In the back of his mind, he knew what Smitty was telling him is true. Yet he couldn't help but doubt a bit. 

"... John, we don't have to go-"

"No, I want to go." John exhaled out of his mouth, seeing the white smoke forming. Smitty's lips was formed on a thin line when John glanced at him. It almost seemed as if Smitty wasn't sure if he should believe the human's words or not. If John was in his shoes, he would've felt the same. 

After seconds of silence, Smitty finally sighed. "Okay."

"... Okay?"

"As much as I want to show you where I usually hang-out, I don't want to force you," Smitty explained. "In fact, it's admirable how brave you are right now. But still, if you ever feel like bailing out, just tell me and I'll get you out of there."

"Stop being so understanding and get a move on." Despite the harsh words, there was no heat in them. Smitty only grinned in response. 

The door was kicked open, a bit too harshly, immediately ceasing action that was happening in the bar. No one moved a muscle as Smitty appeared at the other side not bothered at the fact he's letting snow come in as he opened his arms wide, his smile relaxed and his voice booming with energy. 

"What is UP buttercups! Ya'll miss ya boy?!" 

Much to John's surprise (as he quietly closed the door behind him), almost every monster laughed and cheered as they greeted their friend. Again, he realized some of them spoke in a language he knew was not English but somehow still understood. However, he noticed some are speaking in English- or tried to, it was hard to decipher it. 

As Smitty happily greeted back, John made sure to stay close to him. The bar... wasn't what he expected. It looked more like a diner with all the tables and chairs. At one of the tables, he noticed a bunch of dog monsters wearing armor playing poker. Lesser Dog was one of them, and he barked upon seeing John. 

He could tell a handful were noticing him, but fortunately, they did nothing as the two finally reached the other side of where the actual bar is. The high stools were taller than what John usually sees, though it wasn't too difficult climbing it to sit down. Smitty, however, had to spend a minute trying to get his butt on the chair. It resulted in awkward silence as John avoided the gaze of a rainbow-colored fire elemental.

"Ey, Fitz! How are you doing?" Smitty asked the bartender once he got on the stool, his arm resting on the counter. The elemental didn't speak, although his face (or what was supposed to be his face, since he actually lacked eyes but have a thin line which would resemble a mouth) moved ever so slightly. For some odd reason, John could tell Fitz isn't entirely too fond of having a human on his bar, which made him nervous. 

"I'll have my usual. John? How about you? Burgers or fries?" 

John licked his dry lips. "Fries would be nice." 

Smitty nodded to Fitz, who wordlessly disappeared into the backroom which he assumed was the kitchen. 

"So... I feel like your friend doesn't like me very much." 

Smitty nervously laughed at that. "Hehe... Uh... You noticed?" 

"What's his deal?"

Smitty sighed, running a hand through his snow-like hair before responding. "Fitz has been around for quite a long time. Elementals tend to live longer than most, which means Fitz has been around since the barrier was first brought up."

"Barrier... the one keeping you guys in the underground."

"That's the one." Smitty nodded. "Anyway, Fitz had a lot of good friends- I've met some of them, actually. They were like siblings- a family, inseparable through the years. However, as time went on, things change. It first started with one of his friends suddenly vanishing out of thin air, never to be heard again. Another friend 'fell down'."

Fell down... When he visited the library earlier, it mentioned how when a monster so-called 'dies', they will go through what they call 'falling down'. It essentially means that monsters who have fallen down are put into a brief coma-like state before turning to dust. This made John shiver at the thought of watching your friend turn into ashes.

"What happened after that?"

"Time, pretty much. The friend that vanished already put everyone in a heavy mood but after that one monster that fell down? What was his name... Mason? It kind of made everything worse. They couldn't bear to be near each other when all they remembered was their lost friends. Eventually, as time goes by, they just kind of drifted a part. At least not on speaking terms anymore. However, I know deep down they still care about each other." 

This made John frown. It reminded him of what Ohm told him earlier, how he drifted a part from his friends due to time passing by. John couldn't find himself to relate that much since he doesn't have any close friends to drift apart from. But once he thought about it... it's actually pretty scary. 

"Anyway, they're actually coping well, if you're worried about that! At least I hope so- I know one of them is running a bakery in Hotland, the other running a Nice Cream shop and... I'm not sure what Eric is doing, probably getting high." Again, Smitty was mumbling to himself. Considering their close positions, John didn't have to strain his ears that much. Although, he did lean back when Smitty let out an 'ah-ha!' like sound.

"Oh! And Fitz gave up the role of Captain of the Royal Guard in order to run a bar in Snowdin, pretty cool, right?"

John's mind faltered when Smitty mentioned 'Captain' and 'Royal Guard' in the same sentence. He's joking, right? 

"It would be if I wasn't a human!" John hissed at him, suddenly fearful for his life. "Do you realize what you brought me into?"

"Hey- Hey! Calm down, Fitz doesn't do that shit anymore. He gave up his title to run a bar, remember that? It basically means he's done with all the human hunting stuff." 

John wanted to snap- to argue back that he was wrong in any way, but he finds himself unable to utter a word. Smitty continues to look at him, an expression on his face that reads 'Go on'. Almost like he was mocking him. John gritted his teeth, looking away from the human-like monster.

The door opened, Fitz appearing at the other side carrying a tray. He must have noticed the tension between the two because when he placed his plate of fries down in front of him, too much force was used as the plate rattled against the counter, fries almost falling out of the plate. John watched as Fitz placed a cup of what he assumed was milk with straw in front of Smitty. 

He couldn't help but stare, not quite processing that Smitty's 'usual' was a cup of milk. 

"Never seen a guy drink milk before?" Smitty asked in a teasing tone as he sipped on the straw, his eyes locked on John's the entire time. John flushed at the implication of his words and looked away almost frustratingly. "Careful with the fries, it's hot." 

"Dully noted," John mumbled, reaching over to grab a fry before bringing his hand back the moment his finger touched the sliced potato. "Fuck! That's too hot!"

"Told you."

John glared at Smitty for the witty comeback. "Why are you just drinking milk?"

"Milk is nice. Have anything against milk or something?" 

"No, I just... it's weird." 

"Drinking milk?" 

John let out a huff of breath, trying to calm himself. "No! No, it's not it's just- I don't normally see milk as a usual drink in a bar up in the surface."

"Yea, well we're not in the surface, if you forgot."

What is up with Smitty? It was as if a switch was suddenly turned, making Smitty act like an asshole. It didn't make sense at all, because just minutes ago he was being concerned about John's wellbeing. Was Smitty joking? Because it's not funny. Smitty was looking straight-ahead, sipping onto his milk as if nothing was happening even though he's literally giving him the cold shoulder. 

It reminded him of highschool. People he thought were friends suddenly acting like assholes to him. 

But instead of feeling butt-hurt over it, John was frustrated. Angry, even. 

"What is your problem?"

Smitty turned to him, and John forced himself to stay still when he suddenly saw a dark shadow over Smitty's eyes. No longer does he see the usually relaxed and cheerful look, now it's replaced with something drastically different. It was dark and threatening. Menacing. Judging. 

"Why don't you trust me that I said everything's fine?" Smitty questioned in a low tone it caused shivers down his spine.

John blinked and was at a loss for words. He didn't understand where Smitty was getting at. Did he say something wrong? What was it that he said that ticked his friend off? The human tried to remember and recalled minutes into their conversation before Smitty started acting odd. Once he did, John couldn't help but feel irritated. 

"Are you- are you fucking serious, Smitty? Are you hurt that I prioritize my own safety over someone I just met?" 

"I know Fitz for years! He's not some heartless monster that still follows the old ways."

"Well- maybe you're heartless for ignoring the fact that I am in constant danger, no matter where I am!-"

John yelped, almost toppling off his stool when a knife suddenly slammed on the counter, the tip of the blade penetrating the small space between his index and middle finger. Chatter and laughter ceased into tense silence as Fitz towered over where the human sat, his hand still gripping onto the handle of the knife. A small whimper left John's lips when he felt a wax-like substance drop on his fingers and realized a moment later that it was coming from Fitz's hand. 

"d o n ' t . . . y o u d a r e . . . t a l k t o . . . m y . . . f r i e n d i n . . . t h a t t o n e ."

Fitz's voice was too soft and hoarse as if he did not use it for years or even decades (though it was still loud). His mouth had opened- it was hard to see much of the inside since it's the same rainbow-color as the rest- however, he does see his teeth which is surprisingly very sharp that can and will kill John if he so pleased. And because of that thought, John begins to hyperventilate. 

"Fitz- wait-!"

It was too late for any intervention as Fitz suddenly grabbed the front of John's shirt and threw him off the chair. John landed a few feet away, miraculously missing the table that was free of monsters who had moved just in time. Before John could get his head straight, the world around him blinked into darkness. 

_Fitz doesn't like humans that much._

John gripped onto the ruby heart locket as a way to ground himself. His other hand reached to the ACT button, barely noticing how badly shaking it was. He skimmed through his options, not even bothering to fully process the others as he pressed on TALK.

"Fitz, I think you're mistaking-" John's voice cut off when he registered the pain on his chest and the tears forming in the corner of his eyes. 

What's happening? What's- Why is he-?

John ducked down, missing a ball of fire that flew over his head. It didn't take a second longer to finally realize that he's going through a panic attack- while in an encounter during Fitz' turn. It was somehow a miracle that John is able to move just a bit to avoid any attacks and not long did he realize it was back to his turn. 

However, he couldn't move. 

His knees buckled below him. John didn't register the pain as his bottom hit the ground particularly hard. Even if he did, it would be nothing compared to the uneven short breaths he was making as he tried to desperately calm himself down. 

What was it that he did to calm himself down? Five senses? There's literally nothing here to see, hear, smell, taste- whatever the fifth sense was. Vaping was always a solution, but not a reliable one. Not like that would matter because he doesn't have his vape with him. 

"w e a k ."

John curled on himself, trying to make himself smaller as much as he can. Fitz's words rang in his head like a broken recorder. 

"j u s t l i k e a l l t h e o t h e r s ."

The only reply John could give was the ragged gasps and whimpers leaving his mouth.

". . . d e t e r m i n a t i o n . . . t h e l a s t . . . m a g e."

John doesn't understand. 

His hand was moving on its own, somehow stable despite his shaking body. It rested on ACT for a moment before giving him choices. John didn't realize he tapped on 'Smitty'.

"You and Smitty... you guys are close, right?" John softly said, his voice quivering. He slowly stood up, balancing himself as he continued. "That's... That's nice. To have friends that are close and can be trusted. Smitty's a good example of that."

"y o u w o u l d n ' t . . . u n d e r s t a n d ."

John accidentally tripped on himself when he went to avoid the fire balls. It made him fall, effectively making him dodge all the danger flying over his head. 

"You're right. I wouldn't... Wouldn't understand how it would be like losing a friend." John wiped away his tears. Fitz looked surprised from his posture. "I know. Smitty told me. It- It's not my place to know. Never was, but Smitty told me. And you're right, I wouldn't understand because- because-" 

His words choked in his throat. John forced himself to let it out. 

"I never had any close friends like you did. Yea, I did have friends that left me and stuff but not friends that are close enough to be family. So yea, I wouldn't understand losing a friend like that because- well- I never had one."

It was somehow surprising how steady his voice was. His chest still hurt, though. 

"But you still have Smitty to count on, right? That's- That's worth all of the people I thought were my friends up in the surface." 

John took deep breathes. 

"You were just protecting Smitty. I understood that. In turn... Smitty was defending you." That last part was his realization of why Smitty was acting like a dick. "I said some pretty stupid stuff and Smitty thought I was talking shit about you."

When Fitz formed a fireball, John immediately waved his arms around in alarm. "I- I wasn't, I swear! I just couldn't help but feel like I'm in danger and- okAY I think I just made it worse."

The monster's shoulders shook slightly, as if he was laughing to himself even though one fireball on his hand grew much more bigger. 

"I know what I said could've been phrased better but you understand, right?"

The fireball was gone. John was surprised when a text appeared in front of him.

_Fitz is sparing you._

"I a m d o n e f i g h t i n g . I s t i l l f i n d h u m a n s d i s l i k e a b l e . . . y o u a r e o k a y."

"Geez, thanks."

"T h i s . . . n o t i m p o r t a n t . S m i t t y ."

John noticed how little and softer Fitz' words have gotten. It must be due to the lack of use taking its toll on him. 

"What about him?"

"T a l k . U n d e r s t a n d ."

He didn't need to say any more for John to know what he's trying to say. He nodded, sighing. 

"Yea. Thanks."

_SPARE._

You earned 5 G 0 EXP.

As John returns to the bar, there was suddenly full of cheers and shouts as the monsters all around celebrated... whatever the hell was happening. Whatever it was, they looked elated to see both their favorite bartender and the human standing in one piece. Heck, some of them even started talking to John and patting him on the back and shoulders.

John couldn't process it. His mind only registering how small and tight it was and how loud and how painful his chest became-

He didn't feel a hand grip onto his arm. 

One moment, there were so many things happening all at once. The next it was just silence. 

John was lead to what seemed like a couch as he goes through his panic attack. It wasn't as bad as before, so John finds it easier to calm himself down. (Though it doesn't mean it's a walk in a park to actually calm himself down).

It took maybe about twenty minutes until John was able to evenly breathe again. Once he was finally calm, John took in the living room he was currently in. Then he turned to the monster that took him away. 

Smitty held his neutral expression, even though he visibly tensed up upon John turning to face him. 

"So, that was pretty crazy." Oh Smitty, trying to start a conversation as if everything's fine. One end of John's lips curled into a soft smile, relieved that Smitty wasn't angry at him anymore. Based on Smitty's sigh of relief, John could tell Smitty was feeling the same way. 

"I'm sorry I didn't trust you before, about Fitz."

"No no, I'm sorry I didn't consider your feelings about all this. I would've felt the same unsafe feeling if I was in your shoes, so you're not at fault here." 

John scoffed. "We both overreacted in our own way. So we're both at fault if you think about it." He briefly remembered what Fitz told him in their encounter, making him sigh as he considers his next words. "And I'm serious about it, too. You have to understand- both of us are drastically different in our own unique way. I have to understand that you are still the most experienced since you've lived in the underground while you-"

"-have to understand that you're walking on unfamiliar territory. That nothing about this is what you're used to in the surface." Smitty continued for him. "Yea... I realized that after Fitz pulled you into an encounter and disappeared." 

The human blinked in slight confusion. He never thought that there will be something happening while he was in an encounter. Truth be told, he was too busy trying to dodge everyone and everything to prevent himself from dying. Now that Smitty mentioned that he disappeared when Fitz pulled him into an encounter, it only made him all the more curious as to how the fucking hell could that happen. 

"You're doing it again."

"Doing what?" John asked. Smitty was smiling at him, almost fondly. 

"That. When I said something that made you curious. Intrigued. You look like you wanted to know more." The (younger? Older?) monster chuckled. "You've been doing it a lot. It's adorable."

John huffed, looking away. His cheeks were definitely dusted with pink but he chose to ignore that. "You can't just say that out of nowhere, especially since I didn't get to eat my fries." 

"You mean this?"

The sudden smell of salty fries hit John's nose like a fucking train. He turned back, stunned to see Smitty holding a translucent bag containing the fries he had ordered a couple of minutes ago. Based on the smoke coming out of the bag, the fries were still hot. Before John could even question it, Smitty passed him his food. 

"I knew you'd be pissed if you didn't get to eat your fries, so I put it in my dimensional box for safe-keeping while you were with Fitz." 

There it was again; his curiosity overtaking his mind. "Does it always happen? Disappearing while you're in an encounter?"

"Usually, but not all the time. It depends on your environment, really. If an encounter is commenced in an environment where it is undesirable to have said encounter, let's say for example a small bar, you and the monster that commenced the encounter will so-called 'disappear'. It's like transporting yourself into another realm through magic. However, your souls don't entirely disappear in the real world, so all of us can still sense your presence even though you're physically not there." 

"But it's still pretty common, because of how small the underground is." 

Smitty sadly smiled. "Yea. Although the rules still somewhat apply even if you 'disappear' or not. The world will still turn black and white. If your environment is somewhat desirable to have an encounter, then you can use your environment to ACT. Other than that, the ground can do just fine." 

This entire conversation is almost like a tutorial. Or was it like an Origin kind of story? Like John collects papers and it tells him why things are like this, like that... something out of a video game. 

Soon after that mini tip, they were silent. It wasn't tensed this time, nor was it uncomfortable. It was peaceful, quiet, warm. The house itself was still dark but Smitty made no move to turn on any of the lights. Instead, he leaned against the arm rest, his emerald eyes looking everywhere yet nowhere at the same time, almost as if he was lost in thought. 

John glanced at him ever so often, wondering what was going through that mind of his. The fries grew warm as John savored the taste of fast food. He realizes that for every bite, there was a tingling sensation as he swallowed it. Almost like a spark of magic entering his body. Of course, he should have known that monsters couldn't really eat human food and thus had to make their own. 

Fortunately, their food is pretty awesome, so he's not complaining. 

As ten minutes passed, John thought the silence wouldn't go away any time soon. He was even planning on taking a short nap until a nearby lamp suddenly flickered, causing the two species to sharply turn their heads. 

"What was that?" John was alarmed and slightly panicked. His hand unconsciously reached for the golden locket, clutching it into a tight grip as he stared at the lamp. Much to his surprise, Smitty chuckled. 

"A friend coming to visit," Smitty replied, standing up from the couch. John watched as Smitty flicked the rest of the lights on, illuminating the living room in a harsh bright light. John had to close his eyes from the sudden change of brightness. 

"A friend?" John echoed. "That's- I mean, maybe I shouldn't be surprised but that's normal?!"

"Yep. Where are you? Come on, girl! I know you're hiding!" Smitty cupped his hands around his mouth, shouting into the ceiling. John continued to watch, slowly munching on his fries to hopefully calm down. What the fuck is Smitty doing? 

A bark replied back to Smitty's calls. John was still processing the sound when a small grey translucent... ball came out of nowhere, smacking right into Smitty. It caused Smitty to fall onto the rough-looking rug a bit too painfully. Despite that, the monster was laughing happily as he tried to stop the small ball of whatever it is from licking his face. 

"Octavia! O-Octa- AH! Stop! I love you, too!" 

John tipped his head to the side. It is clear that the thing was apparently a ghost due to its translucent nature. Even though the sound it made was similar to a dog's bark, the ghost resembled almost a giant marshmallow with two lopsided ears, a snout (tongue included), black eyes and comically small legs. It's as if a child asked god to make a dog they drew at age 3 become reality and god somehow agreed. 

He didn't know why the dog couldn't just look like a dog until he remembered the dog guards he saw earlier. It would've been so weird.

"So, is it your pet?" John asked. Octavia finally got off of Smitty to inspect the human. Sniffing John's hand, legs, fries... John wasn't too scared of the weird little thing, but he finds himself to be slightly wary anyway as he caught Octavia snatching a fry before disappearing and reappearing beside Smitty. 

"I... guess? I mean, I never really officially got her. Octavia just appeared kind of nowhere and I just accepted it." Smitty shrugged, petting the dog. Octavia barked happily. "A friend of mine actually owns a bunch of ghost puppers and takes care of them. He lives in Waterfall, the next area after Snowdin. Plays his guitar a lot, hard to miss him." 

John silently nodded, not really sure what he was supposed to do with this information. For a pretty short description, it reminded John of the ghost he saw back in the Ruins. It wouldn't be too far-fetched to think Nogla, who had shown him his guitar skills, is also the keeper of ghost puppies, right?

"She likes you."

She actually does. Octavia had jumped back onto the couch and had curled onto John's side. Even though she's a ghost, John could feel the pressure of where her backside is pressing against his thigh. Almost cautiously, John's hand reached over to caress the ghost pup. He was shocked to feel how surprisingly soft Octavia's smooth skin felt, like a marshmallow. A giant, cute, marshmallow. 

John smiled. 

For the first time ever since he left the Ruins, it was finally peaceful.

* * *

Spoke too soon.

By some literal luck, John actually fell asleep. He wasn't sure when he managed to snooze off, nor did he knew he fell into a slumber. All he remembered was listening to Smitty rant about science while petting Octavia. His voice must have lulled him to sleep because when his mind had a bit of consciousness in them, he registered at least three things simultaneously. 

The first one is the loud ringing tone, similar to a phone ringing. The second is how dark the living room was, reminding him of the peaceful moment he had with Smitty before Octavia came. The third and last one is how there was something weighing him down. A moment later he realized it was a thick green blanket.

There were some movements coming from the couch, before the ringing stopped, replaced with Smitty's tired voice. 

John closed his eyes and tried to go back to sleep, not wanting to intrude into what is most likely a private conversation between Smitty and the caller (even if it made him curious). Fortunately, his mind didn't seem to take too long to shut down, but even then it wasn't fast enough that John still caught a snippet of Smitty's replies.

"Hello? Oh, hey... Yea, yea I'm still working on it..." 

"..."

"Fitz? O-Oh... So, you heard about what happened in the bar?"

"... What? No! No- it was nothing serious, I swear! Just these two monsters encountering each other, the usual you-know-whats."

That was all John heard before he finally went to sleep. 

It only seemed like minutes when he woke up again to the soft sound of a guitar playing. Pushing the comfortable covers off himself, John let out a loud yawn, effectively cutting off the music. John didn't seem to register this until Smitty chuckled from where he sat on the armrest, balancing a guitar on his lap. 

"Morning, sleeping beauty."

"Damn right I'm a beauty... you play guitar?"

As a reply, Smitty strummed a single chord. 

"Does every monster play guitar or something?"

"No, not everyone. The instruments we ever get underground is from the humans that throw them down here."

John blinked. Do people actually do that?

He was still silently questioning the morales of humanity when Smitty placed his guitar (which he realized was... heavily fixed up) back into its stand. He reached over to collect his primary-colored spinning hat and placed it over his head. 

"If you're awake enough and want to leave, I gotta show you something." 

John didn't reply, only watching Smitty wear his navy-orange hoodie. 

"I'll be waiting outside." 

He left, the front door closing with an audible click. For a while, John finds himself at a loss of what to do. 

Octavia barked, hopping onto the couch to curl at John's sides. He rolled his eyes. 

"You are awfully getting clingy, aren't you?"

"Bark!"


End file.
